


The Seal of the Tree

by Jenksel



Category: The Librarians (TV 2014)
Genre: AU, Angst, Casskins, F/M, Fluff so much fluff, Happy Ending, Immortal Jenkins, Magic, Partnership, Romance, Unicorns, married Cassandra/Jenkins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-22
Updated: 2018-02-04
Packaged: 2019-03-08 04:00:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 35,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13450095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jenksel/pseuds/Jenksel
Summary: A little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was begun before Season 4 started, therefore some details are not in line with current canon.
> 
> NB: I want to thank the lovely Velvet Storm for kindly allowing me to use and expand on her idea of the Tree of Love for this story; she first mentioned it in her own wonderful Casskins story "The Knight and His Lady" on FanFiction.net and it really intrigued me. If you haven't read it yet, please treat yourself and do so!

Cassandra Cillian stretched her arms wide and arched her tired back, then dropped gratefully onto the soft leather sofa cushion in Jenkins’s sitting room as the Caretaker slipped out of his suit coat and draped it over a nearby chair arm. With a loud sigh of relief, he plopped down onto the sofa next to Cassandra and instantly began to cuddle up to her, wrapping one long arm around her and hugging her close. The small clock on a side table softly told them it was one o’clock in the morning.

The previous few weeks had been a whirlwind of celebrations and activity. The Christmas season had been given over to decorating, gift-wrapping, cooking, eating, teasing, laughter and drinking, with barely a break before New Year’s Eve and its accompanying celebrations. And all of that had taken place in between several minor missions for the Library. Now that January had finally arrived, things were finally getting back into a more normal and subdued routine for everyone, though there was still some catch-up to done on the workload, hence the lateness of the hour for the Caretaker and the Librarian.

Cassandra sighed happily now and snuggled into her knight’s side. She was feeling pleasantly warm and happy, and Jenkins was feeling relaxed and contented this evening as well. Both were tired from the long day’s work, but even so neither was quite ready for bed yet.

Cassandra was especially reluctant to let go of the holiday season’s excitement. She’d been keeping a secret from Jenkins over the last few months, one she had hoped to share with him for Christmas, but her nerve failed her. She decided earlier today that she was ready to tell him about it, and despite the late hour she was ready to share it right now. She just needed to get Jenkins down to the Heart of the Library.

“Do you know what I feel like doing?” she asked casually.

“Hmm? What’s that, my dear?” he replied sleepily, eyes closed; he was near to dozing off.

“I’d like to take a walk. In the Heart of the Library.”

Opening his eyes, Jenkins raised his white head and gave her a quizzical look. “The Heart of the Library? At this hour?”

“Why not? I bet it’s really beautiful this time of night, very peaceful and romantic,” she enthused as she looked up into his tired eyes with her own wide, excited ones. “Come with me, Jenkins? Please? We’ve been so busy the last few weeks that we’ve hardly had a quiet minute to ourselves, and I miss that.” 

He almost refused, but at the last second relented. Her requests were usually so small and innocuous that he never had the heart to deny her. With the busyness of the holidays, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Cassandra would want to have a little ‘couple’s time’. But in the Heart of the Library, in the middle of the night? That struck the immortal as odd; but then, his Librarian wasn’t exactly what one could call ‘normal’, thank goodness.

“Very well, then, when you put it that way, my dear, how can I refuse?” he said affectionately as he stood up stiffly and held his hand out to her. After helping her up from the sofa, he grabbed his coat from the chair and shrugged back into it, then offered her his arm. Cassandra linked her arm through his, and they started out.

They were silent as they made their way through the darkened hallways of the Annex and then the Library, partly due to weariness, partly due to the fact that they didn’t need to speak to express themselves to each other. The way Cassandra held onto the Caretaker’s arm and leaned lightly against him as they walked; the way Jenkins deliberately shortened his normally long-legged strides so that the petite woman could easily walk with him—these and all of their other little gestures and movements expressed as perfectly as words how they felt about one another.

Soon they stepped off of the elevator and into the lush forest in the Heart of the Library itself. The sky above was clear, with the glowing moon just past full and the brilliant stars of the Milky Way bathing everything in a cool, blue-white light. Cassandra never understood exactly how the Library could contain the sky, while the sky still continued to exist outside of the Library, but the only explanation Jenkins ever gave her when she asked was, “It’s magic,” and so she left it at that. 

It was cold and snowy in Portland right now, but here, in the Heart of the Library, it was like a perfect summer night, warm and dry, with crickets and tiny tree frogs singing all around them. As they strolled along the dirt path, Cassandra asked questions about the various trees and plants they passed by and Jenkins happily answered them all, pleased to be able to share some of his immeasurable knowledge with an appreciative learner.

“Let’s go this way,” the Librarian directed, suddenly pointing to a small side path that branched off the main walkway. “I’d like to see what’s over here.” Jenkins was hesitant, though.

“It’s a bit dark for sightseeing, my dear,” he cautioned. “I wouldn’t want you to trip over a root or a vine and hurt yourself.”

She grinned at him knowingly. “But I found something new in the forest that I think you’d like to see,” she coaxed, moving a few steps down the small path and holding out her hand to lead him down it. 

“Oh?” he questioned, looking doubtful. He prided himself on knowing every inch of the Library’s Heart; he hadn’t seen any additions to the forest in ages. “And what would that be?”

Cassandra practically bounced on her toes. “A Tree of Love!” she squealed.

He stared at her for a moment, then began to chuckle. “I think you must be mistaken, my dear,” he said kindly. “There has never been a Tree of Love in the Library.” He paused for a moment, then dropped his eyes to the ground.

“None that have survived, I should say,” he corrected himself quietly.

The Librarian simply smiled. “Well, according to a book I found in the Library about Trees of Love...”

“Ah, I know that book,” the Caretaker responded disapprovingly. “Unfortunately, it’s a very elementary text. Very basic, practical information only. Nothing about their history or lore, really.”

“History or lore?” Cassandra asked, intrigued. Jenkins, distracted now, began to unconsciously follow the Librarian down the small path as he began to fill in the gaps in her knowledge. 

“Have I ever told you the story of the very first Tree of Love, Cassandra?” She shook her head, eyes wide and innocent as she walked slowly with Jenkins, his voice taking on the mixed tones of a lecturer and a storyteller.

“It is the story of Baucis and Philemon—do you know it?” Cassandra again shook her head. Jenkins began the tale, his voice soft and distant.

“The Greek gods Zeus and Hermes came to earth one day disguised as ordinary peasants in order to test the kindness and hospitality of humans. They travelled through one particular city, asking people to put them up for the night, but they were rudely turned away at every house they came to. Eventually, the two gods came to the simple home of Baucis and Philemon, a couple who had married when young and then grown old together over many happy years.” Jenkins paused for a moment, and Cassandra thought she heard the old Caretaker sigh longingly before he continued the story.

“Though the couple was poor, they showed more kindness and generosity than their rich, but selfish, neighbors. After serving their guests what poor food and wine they had, Baucis noticed that although she had refilled her guests’ cups many times, the wine pitcher was still full. Realizing then that their visitors were actually gods, she and her husband begged the deities to forgive them for their poor hospitality. Zeus reassured the pair that he meant them no harm, then warned them to leave the town, because he was going to destroy it and all the people who had turned Hermes and him away. He instructed Baucis and Philemon to climb the nearby mountain with them and to not turn back until they reached the top.

“And so they climbed to the summit, and when Baucis and Philemon looked back on the town, they saw that it had all been destroyed by a flood, except for their home, which Zeus had turned into a beautiful temple. Baucis and Philemon were given the honor of being the temple’s caretakers. The couple was also granted a wish; they requested that when it came time for one of them to die, the other would die as well, because neither could bear the thought of living for even one moment without the other. And so, upon their deaths, the gods transformed them into an intertwining pair of trees, an embodiment of their true love and devotion to one another.”

The immortal turned to Cassandra as he finished the tale, his voice slightly wistful. “All of the seeds that are planted and become Trees of Love today are descendants of that very first Tree that came into being thousands of years ago in Greece.”

“That’s a beautiful story,” said the Librarian, truly touched. “What happened to the original Tree, the one that used to be Baucis and Philemon?” 

“Ah, sadly, it was lost in an earthquake long before the Library could transplant it here to the Heart,” he answered. “The best that could be done was to gather and preserve as many of the seeds from that original Tree as possible.”

Cassandra slipped her hand into Jenkins’s. He gave her fingers a gentle squeeze as they continued quietly along the dimly-lit path. After a few more yards, Jenkins suddenly saw it; ahead of them, in a small clearing, he spied a tree he guessed to be about 25 feet tall, with a beautiful canopy of large, lush, green leaves that glittered in the moonlight like jewels. The slender trunks of the two individual trees were tightly entwined around each other, their branches intermingled so that one tree’s limbs were indistinguishable from the other’s. 

The Caretaker immediately recognized it as a nearly mature Tree of Love, the result of someone writing their own name and the name of their loved one onto two of the special seeds he had just spoken about, and then planting them together. As the couple’s love grew and deepened, so the two plants that sprang from the seeds would grow and entwine themselves around each other, the two becoming one tree, the strength and depth of the couple’s love determining how tall and strong it ultimately grew to be. When mature, a Tree of Love could, under the right conditions, produce exquisite, rose-like blossoms that gave off an indescribably sweet scent. Jenkins had planted such a tree for himself and Charlene not long after he vowed his heart to her, but it didn’t survive. Both parties had to be committed to the relationship, otherwise the entire tree died.

“What a beautiful specimen!” he breathed in awe as he approached the Tree and touched its smooth, intricately twisting trunks. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more perfectly formed Tree of Love!” He closely examined a low-hanging branch.

“And it looks as though it may be able to bloom soon—perhaps even in time for St. Valentine’s Day,” he said wonderingly. He turned to Cassandra and explained.

“The blossoms only appear if the couple that it represents…um…’consummate’ their relationship beneath its branches. The blossoms that appear after that can then be pressed and made into a perfume that’s said to be a very powerful aphrodisiac for that couple!”

He moved slowly around the Tree, examining it minutely, excited to have come across such a rare and magical item. “For a Tree to be this size, Mr. Carsen must have planted the seeds shortly after Colonel Baird arrived in the Library,” the Caretaker continued commenting. Cassandra smiled, but refused to move.

“Flynn didn’t plant the seeds,” she stated matter of factly. Jenkins turned and looked at the young woman, regarding her with a perplexed expression.

“No?” he said, then his face assumed a surprised air. “Colonel Baird planted them?” He arched his eyebrows in wonder. “Indeed? Well, I must confess, I never had Colonel Baird pegged as the sentimental type.”

“Eve didn’t plant the seeds, either,” said Cassandra, excitement building within her. Jenkins’s face went back its original confused expression.

“But that’s impossible,” he protested. “A Tree of Love won’t grow for a third party; only one or both of the parties in the subject relationship must prepare and plant the seeds. How could Mr. Carsen and Colonel Baird possibly have a Tree unless one of them planted the seeds?” Cassandra rolled her eyes in exasperation. Jenkins was a very smart man—a brilliant scientist, in fact—but sometimes he could be thick as mud. 

“It’s not their Tree,” she squealed elatedly. “It’s our Tree!” Jenkins gaped at her, eyes wide in astonishment, jaw dropped. Cassandra laughed at the comical expression.

“I planted the seeds! I wrote our names on the seeds and planted them myself, Jenkins, a couple of weeks after you told me about your and Charlene’s Tree,” she bubbled, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. “I didn’t say anything before now because...well, in case something went wrong or I didn’t do it right, and it didn’t survive. But it did survive! And when I saw how fast and how big it grew, how beautiful it was—I had to share it with you!”

For several long moments all the immortal could do was to stare at her, the long fingers of one hand over his lips in amazement.

“But…how can this possibly be?” he breathed, as if he was afraid to believe what he had just heard. “The size—it’s far too large for the seeds to have been planted less than a year ago!”

Cassandra merely shrugged her shoulders. “That’s when I planted them. I did some research and found that book in the Library that showed me how to do it, and then how to water it and everything. It sprouted in no time, actually, and then it grew like crazy. I thought that’s just how it’s supposed to work!” 

The redhead shrugged again and made a questioning face. “Maybe it grew so fast because we just love each other so much…?”

Before the Librarian realized what was happening, Jenkins was upon her, his arms around her and holding her so tightly she had trouble breathing. As she slipped her arms around his waist and smiled against his chest, Jenkins buried his face in her red hair, eyes closed. She could feel him trembling ever so slightly.

“Cassandra,” he croaked, his emotions choking him as he tried to control them. “I don’t know what to say; you have no idea what this means to me...” He kissed her head as he tried to blink back the tears he felt coming to his eyes. Cassandra turned her face upward and raised one hand to his face, then stood on her toes to kiss him. 

Jenkins suddenly pushed her roughly away.

“NO!” he cried, a look of panic on his face. Seeing the hurt and confusion on the Librarian’s face, he hurried to explain.

“I’m sorry, Cassandra, I didn’t mean to be so harsh,” he apologized quickly. “But—you’re not aware of an important piece of information regarding Trees of Love.”

“What information?” she asked, her feelings still hurting from his rejection. Jenkins looked down as he spoke in a hushed tone.

“Recall how, in practically every wedding ceremony in the western world, the bride and groom kisses at the end of it: That kiss ‘seals’ the marriage, seals the union of the two people together. That kiss is a very faint echo of the original Seal of the Tree of Love.” He paused for a moment to make sure she was listening to what he was saying.

“If a couple kisses while beneath their Tree, their love is irrevocably Sealed for all eternity.” He brought his gaze back to her eyes. “Had you kissed me, our two souls would’ve been bound together forever.”

“Yeah, truly a fate worse than death—thanks for warning me,” Cassandra said sharply, stung. This surprise wasn’t turning out at all like she had thought it would. Jenkins cupped her face in his large hands.

“You don’t understand, Cassandra—when I say ‘eternity’, I mean just that. We would be bound together in this world, and the next, forever.” He took her two hands in his and took a deep breath. 

“In other words, it would be a de facto marriage,” he said quietly, his face unreadable. “Not in the eyes of the civil authorities, no. But in the eyes of the Library, the Universe, the gods, every other entity and being in existence—Yes! And it would be an absolutely indissoluble bond. Nothing would break it. Not Time, not Death, not the End of All Things.” He lowered his gaze again to the ground beneath them.

“I’m sorry, Cassandra, I don’t mean to be hurtful. But this is something you need to know, before you do something you might come to regret,” he said softly.

Cassandra felt numb, and her hands hung cold and limp in his. You mean something that YOU might come to regret, she thought bitterly.

“I want to ask you something, Jenkins,” she barely whispered. “And I want an honest answer.”

“Of course,” he replied.

“If the Tree for you and Charlene had lived—“ she began.

“Cassandra, don’t, please—“

“—Would you have stood under it and kissed her? Would you have regretted doing that?” she finished, talking over the top of him. She waited for his reply, but he remained silent, and refused to look up from the ground. The Librarian sighed softly and gently pulled her hands out of his.

“I see,” she said. She stepped back, looking around at anything other than the tall man in front of her, and wrapped her arms tightly around herself. 

“It’s getting late; we should go back.” She turned and began to walk away. After a few steps she broke into a run and disappeared into the darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

Jenkins wandered through the Heart of the Library for a time after Cassandra ran away, pondering on what had just happened, and giving the young woman some time to herself before he tried to talk to her again. They seemed to do this a lot, he reflected—Have a disagreement, Cassandra storms out, Jenkins stews over it. They really needed to work on that, he mused wryly, then turned his attention went back to the reason Cassandra had stormed out this time. All the poor woman had wanted to do was to surprise him with something wonderful, and he’d once again managed to ruin it for her. He shook his head at himself in wonder. _Jenkins, you must be the world’s oldest and most effective wet blanket _, he thought sadly.__

__An hour later Jenkins entered their bedroom, just as Cassandra was about to turn out the light and climb into bed. He halted in his tracks for a moment and looked at her, his eyes hesitant._ _

__“Perhaps it would be best if I sleep elsewhere tonight,” he said, and began heading in the direction of the linen closet for a pillow and blankets; fortunately there was a cot in his lab that he could use this evening. While his back was turned, Cassandra left the bed and ran to him, throwing her arms around the surprised man._ _

__“No!” she said pleadingly. “No, Jenkins! Please—stay here! I’m sorry!” She held him tightly, her face buried in his broad back. He turned around and put his long arms around her, holding her tightly to himself in response._ _

__“I’m sorry, Jenkins,” she repeated. “Come to bed? Please?” She released him to take his hand, and pulled him towards the big bed. He went willingly, and once there he allowed her to help him to undress. He got into the large bed and lay on his side, waiting for her, as he did every other night. Cassandra quickly stripped off her pajamas and crawled onto the bed to lay against him, snuggling her slim, naked body into his as he pulled the blankets over them both and draped his arm over her. They lay together quietly like that for several long minutes, the warmth of their bodies against each other comforting them both._ _

__“I shouldn’t have sprung that on you just out of the blue. I didn’t know any of that about Trees of Love, I had no idea how serious a thing they are. And I shouldn’t have asked you questions like that about Charlene. It was unfair; I’m sorry,” said the young woman quietly. The Caretaker lowered his head and kissed the top of hers softly._ _

__“I understand, my love, and you don’t have to apologize,” he said gently. “You were eager to share something wonderful with me, and I ruined the surprise. It IS something wonderful, very wonderful, make no mistake. It’s just that there’s far more to it than romantic stories, isn’t there?” She snorted softly in disgust._ _

__“Yeah, I guess so. And stupid, romantic me—“ Jenkins cut her off sharply._ _

__“No! You’re not stupid, Cassandra, simply ignorant of all of the facts, and there’s a great difference between the two,” he said firmly. He sighed into her hair before continuing. “You asked me a question about Charlene...”_ _

__“No, Jenkins, you don’t have to answer it!” she blurted. He briefly tightened his arm around her and made a quiet shushing sound._ _

__“Yes, I do. You deserve to know everything.” He paused for a moment and took a deep breath._ _

__“Yes; had our Tree survived, and had she agreed to do it, I would’ve stood beneath it with her and Sealed our love forever, with no hesitation.” Cassandra closed her eyes tightly and bit her lower lip, her stomach feeling like a sledgehammer had just struck it full force._ _

__“But,” he went on. “You have to remember, Cassandra—Charlene and I were immortals. We’d known each other for centuries. She knew everything about me, good and bad. She knew all of my secrets, all of my flaws, all of my hopes and dreams, all of my fears. And I loved her, deeply. I know that’s hard for you to hear, my dear, and I’m very sorry.”_ _

__“So you’re saying that you’re not in love with me as much as you were with Charlene,” she stated flatly, her head beginning to ache with the effort to keep her emotions under control. She felt him shake his head._ _

__“That’s not what I’m saying at all, my dear,” he replied, his voice quavering slightly. “I DO love you, every bit as much as I ever loved Charlene.” He tightened his arm around her even more. “If all things were equal, Cassandra, I would’ve kissed you on the spot tonight, as soon as I learned that the Tree was ours.”_ _

__She squirmed out of his embrace and rolled over so she could face him, her brows knit together in consternation._ _

__“What’s not equal now?” she demanded, tears in her eyes. He ran his fingers into her silky red hair._ _

__“You’ve only known me for three years,” he answered. “What you know about me, what I know about you, barely scratches the surface.”_ _

__“So how long do I have to know you before all things are equal?” she snapped, sitting upright and pulling the bed sheet up to cover herself. “At what point do I know enough about you? When do you know enough about me? At what point in our relationship will I be found to be worthy of you?”_ _

__“Cassandra—“ he began, anguish in his voice. He reached his hand out to her face, only to have it slapped away by the hurt woman._ _

__“No, tell me, Jenkins—when will I be as good as Charlene? When will I be good enough for you?” she cried, tears beginning to fall from her eyes._ _

__“GOD, I wish now you’d never shown me that damn Tree of yours! I wish I’d never shown our Tree to you! I wish I’d never planted those stupid seeds! I wish I’d never even heard of them!” The Librarian broke down and began to cry, burying her face in the sheet._ _

__“Cassandra, I’m so sorry! I don’t mean to hurt you!” Jenkins sat up and reached for her, but the upset woman slipped from his grasp and scrambled out of the bed. As she began to put her pajamas and robe on, the immortal slid to the edge of the bed closest to her and reached for her again, catching her hand._ _

__“Cassandra! Please! It’s not that I don’t think you’re good enough, not at all! I just want you to be sure! I don’t want you to rush into something as important as this without being absolutely certain! I don’t want you do anything that you might come to regret later! I don’t want you to get hurt even more down the road!” he pleaded. She turned and jerked her hand out of his, snorting derisively._ _

__“Too late for that,” she choked out harshly, then turned and headed for the door. “I’m going to go read for a while.” She left the room, pulling the door shut hard behind her._ _

__The Caretaker planted his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his hands, heaving a deep, miserable sigh as he did so._ _

__Life was so much easier before it had been invaded by Librarians._ _

__\----------------------------------------------------------------_ _

__Cassandra sat curled up in a large, overstuffed armchair in the Library’s Reading Room, a thick book of something open on the chair’s arm. She didn’t even know what the book was about; she’d simply snatched one off of the shelves as she stormed by. She couldn’t focus on the text, though, and the illustrations were just blurred patches of color to her eyes. All she could think about was what a stupid little fool she’d been._ _

_“Happily ever afters” only happen to other people, Cassandra Cillian, remember? They never happen to you!_

____The real kicker in all of this was that she knew Jenkins was right. He’d once said that love was the most powerful magic of all, the most uncontrollable of the wild magics, and if she’d learned anything in her short time as a Librarian, it was that wild, uncontrollable magic was not something to be played with. It was to be respected, almost feared. Magic as powerful as love deserved to be doubly respected. If kissing beneath a Tree of Love sealed two people together as deeply and profoundly as Jenkins said it did, then of course the people involved should think about it carefully first. If they rushed headlong into a commitment like that, and then their relationship didn’t work out, it wasn’t like they could just go to Las Vegas and get a quickie “unsealing” or anything. They were stuck._ _ _ _

____Did she really want that kind of bond with Jenkins? Did she really want that kind of bond with anyone? It was more than a little frightening when she stopped to really think about it. To be bound to someone, forever, for all eternity. She could barely get her mind around the concept._ _ _ _

____The Librarian sighed as she shut the book and tossed it onto the floor next to the armchair, the loud thud echoing throughout the huge, silent room._ _ _ _

____What if she did it, what if she did kiss Jenkins under the Tree, and then did have a change of heart later? What if she fell out of love with Jenkins for some reason, or he fell out of love with her? Suppose she caught him being unfaithful to her, or he turned out not to be the ‘Knight in Shining Armor’ she had him built up to be in her mind after all? Would they still be bound together? According to Jenkins, yes. regardless of the circumstances. Whether they loved each other or not. Did she really want that? To be bound to someone that she hated and despised, for all eternity? It was hard for her to imagine ever hating Jenkins like that, but she had to admit to herself that she’d made mistakes before when it came to men. How many times now had she thought she’d found ‘The One’, only to be disappointed later? Cassandra sighed and let her head fall back against the chair’s back._ _ _ _

____And when would they be free of Charlene and the shadow she kept casting over them? ‘If all things were equal’ he said—HA! Maybe three years wasn’t a long time to an immortal, but to Cassandra, it was three years of her life gone that she’d never get back. That was one of the most frustrating aspects of this relationship for Cassandra. Would they ever be free of Charlene? Probably not, if she was honest with herself. Jenkins would always love Charlene in some way. Sometimes that bothered Cassandra, but she couldn’t make him un-love anyone. The Librarian was afraid that she would never be able to get away from the constant comparison with Charlene in Jenkins’s mind. She knew that she would never measure up._ _ _ _

____Cassandra sighed and idly played with a loose thread she found poking out of the armchair. She tried putting herself in Jenkins’s shoes: What if Cassandra had pledged herself to Jenkins, only to have him tell her that he didn’t love her. He HAD done that already, rejected her, in the beginning, when she’d asked him out on a date. And his rejection HAD hurt Cassandra terribly. What if Jenkins had never changed his mind and decided to take a chance with her in the end after all? What would Cassandra be feeling right now? Would she still be carrying a torch for him, or would it have turned into a bitterness that poisoned everything else in her life?_ _ _ _

____A bitterness that was threatening to poison her against Jenkins right now? The bitterness of—jealously?_ _ _ _

____Was that what was really at the root of what she was feeling right now? Jealousy? Was Cassandra feeling jealous of Charlene and the love she still commanded from Jenkins? Was jealousy causing Cassandra to interpret Jenkins’s simple caution as a reluctance to abandon Charlene completely in favor of Cassandra, an “either me or her” kind of scenario?_ _ _ _

____The Librarian sat up straight in the armchair. That was it. It was jealousy on her part._ _ _ _

____Again, she put herself in Jenkins’s place: He takes her to a magical object that would bind her to him forever, and then he more or less demands that she submit to him then and there, not even giving her a chance to absorb what it all meant, let alone have the time she needed to think about if it was something she even wanted. Cassandra realized that she would’ve been completely pissed off at being pressured like that if the roles had been reversed. She slumped forward in the chair with a groan._ _ _ _

_____Poor Jenkins! _she thought. I have to make this up to him.__ _ _ _ _

______Cassandra pulled her robe wound herself more tightly as she lay back in the chair, suddenly feeling very tired. She knew Jenkins would forgive her immediately when she apologized, but they would still have to deal with the problem with Charlene, not to mention the problem of the Tree._____ What do we do with that stupid thing now? _ _ _she wondered as she drifted off to sleep._ ___


	3. Chapter 3

Jenkins still lay awake in the bed as the pale light of dawn began to seep slowly into the large bedroom. He hadn’t been able to sleep at all after Cassandra left. Perhaps he should’ve gone after her, but something told him to let her have some time alone. He’d spent the rest of the night doing his own thinking—about Cassandra, about himself, about Charlene, about love and how complicated it made things.

Life HAD been much less complicated before he met Cassandra, but it had also been infinitely lonelier. He’d come to regard the unrequited love he’d had for Charlene as something noble and ideal—the suffering knight pining for his unobtainable True Love, doing everything for her in an attempt to win her love in return. His love for her had fueled many of his greatest achievements, while he was a knight and even after he had hung up his spurs. He had hoped so much that one day, some day—she would see that love and return it. He’d been bitterly disappointed time and again, first when she chose Judson over himself, then when she married Gaston, then when she turned again to Judson after her divorce. But still, Jenkins hoped. When Judson passed on, the patient Caretaker had thought that finally, at last, Charlene would choose him. She had to choose him now, there was no one else left. It didn’t matter to him that he would’ve been ‘the bottom of the barrel’, so long as she chose him. But she hadn’t, to his utter dismay. And now she was gone, she had chosen to be with another yet again, forever. The old knight had been left behind with the awful knowledge that, despite offering her his very best, he’d never been good enough for her.

Even a blind man could see now that the love he’d had for Charlene was a stunted, misshapen thing compared to the love Jenkins now shared with Cassandra. He had only to compare the Trees of the two women to see that. The one he’d planted for himself and Charlene had died early on, growing into nothing much more than a spindly, sickly weed, even after years of faithful tending. Cassandra’s Tree had shot out of the ground and grown so fast as to completely beg credulity.

Jenkins frowned to himself. But just because he and Cassandra loved each other, that didn’t mean that they were ready for a commitment like that demanded by a Tree of Love Sealing. That kind of a bonding could barely be described in words. It was love magic in its rawest, most powerful form. It was only prudent to be cautious when considering such a step, wasn’t it? It would be the height of folly to rush into such a thing without taking the time to carefully think it through, to take into consideration all of the potential pitfalls. Wouldn’t it?

He sighed as the bedroom steadily became brighter. All of this pondering was becoming too ponderous, he decided. It was time to get up. He had a great deal of work to do today, and he desperately needed a cup of tea. The old immortal rolled out of bed, and suddenly an idea came to him. One of the things he had to do this morning involved the orphaned unicorn colt; he was taking it to the Unicorn Forest to introduce it to its new adoptive mother. Cassandra had been begging him to take her to the Forest ever since she learned about it, but he’d repeatedly refused—unicorns could be unpredictable and dangerous, after all. Perhaps if he asked her to help him with the transferal, offered her the opportunity as sort of an olive branch, it would facilitate a reconciliation. It was a simple task, it would only take a few minutes; the danger would be minimal.

Jenkins, feeling much better now that he had a plan of action, showered and dressed, then headed for the kitchen to make breakfast.

__________________________________________________________________________

“Cassandra, my dear, would you like to accompany me on a little mission of mercy in the Baby Animal Nursery?” asked Jenkins suddenly as they were finishing their somewhat subdued, tension-filled breakfast. The young woman’s eyes flew wide and she dropped her fork so she could clap her hands. 

“Oh, Jenkins, really? Yes, yes, yes!” she yipped in delight, momentarily forgetting that she was upset with him. “And just for future reference, if you ever feel the need to ask that question again, just always assume that the answer is ‘yes’! Because it will always be ‘yes’! She picked up her fork again and began to polish off her scrambled eggs.

“So what’s the mission of mercy?” she asked eagerly between mouthfuls. The Caretaker dabbed his lips with a napkin and then laid it on the table.

“Do you remember the orphaned baby unicorn I showed you a while ago?” Cassandra nodded, gulping down her orange juice. “Well, I’m happy to say that I’ve found a mare in the Unicorn Forest that will adopt him. It’s always better if a young one can be raised by its own kind, you know, and female unicorns are incredibly maternal creatures. I was planning to take him down there after breakfast. I don’t anticipate any trouble—he’s a very well-mannered little fellow—but it’s always best to have some help on hand in case something does go wrong,” he finished, fondly regarding her across the breakfast table as she literally bounced up and down in her chair with excitement. His scheme might just work after all. 

“Shall we clear away the dishes and get going, then?” Cassandra vigorously bobbed her head and made little sounds of agreement as she quickly stuffed the last of her toast into her mouth and began to help Jenkins gather up the dirty dishes.

_________________________________________________________________________

As soon as the young unicorn caught sight of Jenkins he raced to the tall man and excitedly began to gambol around the tall man, trying to lick his hands and making the strange bleating-barking sound Cassandra remembered from previous visits. It soon turned its attention to her, bleating and kicking up its heels as it happily greeted the pair.

Jenkins removed the small halter and bitless bridle he had slung over his shoulder and began to put them on the rambunctious animal, chuckling and talking to it affectingly in a low, soothing voice. Once he had the animal secured, he led the two of them out into the hallway, Jenkins keeping a tight hold of the unicorn’s bridle. Cassandra scratched, patted and cuddled the little creature as the Caretaker walked it through the Library to its new home in the Unicorn Forest, located on a lower level. 

Along the way, the immortal shared some of his vast store of unicorn lore with Cassandra—their strength, their intelligence, their complex family and social structures and customs, even some tidbits about their mating rituals. The Librarian smiled at his enthusiasm. She knew it made him happy to have someone to share his knowledge and wisdom with, and she was more than happy to be that someone. She loved all things magical and magic-related, and she asked dozens of questions as they walked through the Library. She was glad to have something to distract her from last night’s unpleasantness.

“Is there anything about unicorns that you don’t know, Jenkins?” she asked teasingly. He merely smiled brightly with no little pride as he gently pulled the unicorn back from sniffing a nearby table as they passed it.

“Not very much, if I do say so myself,” he said. “I’ve always been fascinated by them ever since the first time I saw one, when I was a very young man.”

“When was that?” the Librarian asked curiously. She was always on the alert to learn anything she could about his past. A note of sadness tinged Jenkins’s voice as he answered her question.

“It was on a unicorn hunt, organized by my father not long after I went to live with him,” he said. “I was only fifteen or sixteen at the time. I’d never seen anything so beautiful in my life as that unicorn—a young female, lovely cinnamon color she was, with a snow-white mane. She was still a juvenile, really, inexperienced, which was probably why she was so easy to capture.” He shook his white head slowly, his features troubled by the memory.

“I’ll spare you the gruesome details, my dear, but she suffered a very brutal death.” He reached down and patted the unicorn’s shoulder, his expression somber.

“Is that why you’re so attached to them now? Because you feel badly for killing that one?” Cassandra asked him sympathetically. Jenkins straightened up and waved his hand in denial.

“Oh, I didn’t kill her,” he stated firmly. “I refused to strike a single blow, I simply couldn’t bring myself to do it. My father was furious. He was trying to make a man out of me, and there I was, not only as soft-hearted as a maiden but also defying him yet again.” Cassandra, happy to know that Jenkins hadn’t been the one to kill a unicorn, frowned when she heard of his father’s displeasure.

“What did your father do?” she asked. The old knight sighed.

“He took his anger out on the unicorn,” he said. “He turned the hounds loose on her.” He again shook his head sadly. “She never stood a chance.” Cassandra put her hand on his arm.

“I’m sorry, Jenkins,” she said simply. He looked over at her and forced a smile.

“After that ugly incident, I wanted to learn everything about them that I could. After I began working for the Library I was absolutely delighted to learn that it had an entire herd of them in the Unicorn Forest. I remember spending months on end with them, day and night, studying them and taking notes. I just couldn’t get enough of them! I still haven’t gotten enough of them, and I still try to spend as much time with them as I can. Even after all these centuries I still learn new things about them.” He looked over as Cassandra tried to stifle a loud giggle. “And what is so amusing, my dear?”

“You!” she answered. “I suddenly had this mental picture you, hiding among the trees and bushes, with a notebook and a camera, observing the unicorns and naming them and eventually becoming adopted by them as one of their own. Just like Jane Goodall and her chimpanzees or Dian Fossey and her gorillas—Jenkins of the Unicorns!” She burst into laughter as the image. 

Jenkins huffed in response, but was otherwise silent as he stopped in front of a large, dark green-painted door with a well-worn brass handle. He turned the knob and pushed the door open. “Here we are!” he announced.

Cassandra followed Jenkins and the unicorn through the door and found herself standing in a small clearing in a thick, dark, foreboding forest. The trees were massive, shaggy-barked and thickly covered with mosses and bracken. Thick, wild, tangled undergrowth choked every space available at ground level. Cassandra tried, but couldn’t see more than a few feet into the forest. She moved next to the immortal’s side, nervously slipping her hand into his free one. He looked down at her, surprised to see apprehension on her face.

“What’s wrong, my dear?” he asked, immediately concerned. She looked up at him as she anxiously chewed her lower lip.

“I’m not sure. I guess it’s just not what I had pictured when I heard the words ‘unicorn forest’. I guess I pictured something a little less....grim-looking,” she said quietly. Jenkins smiled and squeezed her hand reassuringly.

“You have nothing to fear here, Cassandra,” he said. “It’s merely an ancient-growth forest, the kind of habitat that unicorns prefer above all others. Unicorns are very shy creatures, for the most part, and they feel most safe and at home here where there are lots of places for them to hide, but there’s absolutely nothing here that will hurt you, so long as you are careful.” He released her hand and, putting the tips of two fingers in his mouth as he took a deep breath, produced an ear-splitting whistle. He then stood quietly, waiting.

As Cassandra looked around, she suddenly heard movement among the shadowy trees. She stared in the direction of the movement, holding her breath in anticipation and unconsciously slipping behind Jenkins as she peered around him, waiting to see what would emerge from the trees. She heard several light footsteps coming closer and closer, and as they approached she hid herself further and further behind the tall Caretaker.

The young Librarian suddenly gasped softly as several very large creatures emerged from the gloom. The single horns in the middle of their foreheads identified them as unicorns, but they were nothing like Cassandra was expecting to see. They looked like a cross between a horse and an elk, powerfully-built, with cloven hooves and faces that looked more elk-like than horse. They had long, lion-like tails, smooth along their entire lengths with a tuft of long, silky hair at the ends, and long, fine manes, equally silk-like. Some of the unicorns had little beards beneath their chins, some longer than others. Each had a horn, but of varying lengths and thicknesses, depending on the individual’s sex and age. And rather than all of them being white, each had a different coloring, resembling that of horses. Cassandra calculated immediately that they averaged five feet, eight and one quarter inches in height at the withers.

“Oh, my God, Jenkins,” she breathed behind him. “They’re beautiful!” He turned his head to look at her cowering behind him.

“Come, my dear; they won’t hurt you,” he coaxed. “You’re with me, and they trust me, so they trust you, too. Just do as I say and you’ll be fine. Come...” he reached around and gently moved her out from behind him to stand next to him. 

As she took her position next to the Caretaker, one unicorn came forward while the others hung back, watching warily. The approaching unicorn was gigantic, steel-dust in color and tall as a draft horse but more finely built, with a thick, heavy horn over two feet in length. Despite its size, it took delicate steps as it came forward, barely making a sound on the open ground. When it stood directly in front of Jenkins, it reached out its muzzle and lightly touched it to the old Caretaker’s nose in greeting. Jenkins returned the greeting by leaning forward and lightly touching his nose to the unicorn’s. The brief formalities over, Jenkins reached out one hand and stroked the animal’s neck, patting it firmly as it responded by pawing the ground and producing a low, huffing sound. Jenkins turned to Cassandra as he scratched the unicorn’s ears.

“Would you like to meet him, Cassandra?” he asked, a happy glint in his eyes. “This is the leader of the herd. Well, sort of the leader. More of a lieutenant, technically, you might say. I’M the actual leader of the herd.” Cassandra turned her head sharply and stared at him

“How can YOU be the leader?” she blurted.

“I was present when all of these animals were born,” he said proudly. “They’ve all known me only as a member of the herd since the moment they opened their eyes. When the last herd leader died unexpectedly, the older unicorns were TOO old to take on the leadership, but none of these was mature enough for it, so I sort of stepped in. If I hadn’t, chaos would’ve ensued in the struggle for power and even more precious unicorns would’ve died.” He gave Cassandra a sheepish look. 

“You weren’t far off earlier when you teased me about being a ‘Jane Goodall of the Unicorns’. I practically WAS a unicorn for a span of years—lived with them around the clock, until the Librarian at the time put a stop to it.” 

“And the unicorns just accepted you?!” she asked skeptically. The Caretaker snorted in irritation at the question.

“Of course they did! Unicorns are very discriminating creatures, my dear. They know quality when they see it!” The current Librarian struggled to suppress an outburst of laughter, and turned her attention back to the waiting herd.

“Do they have names?” she asked. Jenkins brightened again.

“Oh , yes! For instance, that big steel-dust fellow—His name is Roger.” Cassandra did a double-take at him.

“Roger?” she asked, incredulous. “You named a unicorn ‘Roger’? Roger the unicorn?” He looked at her, his brow furrowed in puzzlement.

“Of course. What’s wrong with ‘Roger’?” he asked. The redhead shrugged her shoulders.

“I don’t know; maybe you could’ve picked something a little more...whimsical? Something a little more...romantic or creative?” she answered. Jenkins frowned in disapproval.

“This isn’t Middle Earth, Cassandra,” he replied sternly. “This is reality, and Roger is perfectly happy with the name I’ve given him.” He turned back to the animal and patted his cheek. “Isn’t that true, Roger?” Roger tossed his head and made a coughing sound in response. Jenkins turned back to Cassandra and held his free hand out to her.

“Come, my dear, meet Roger!” She put her hand hesitantly in his, and he gently pulled her forward. The unicorn was massive next to the petite woman, and more than a little frightening, despite Jenkins’s reassurances. Sensing her fear, the knight stood next to her, his arm around her shoulders protectively.

“Now, just stand still and let him come to you,” he coached her. “He’ll touch his nose to yours, and all you have to do is touch yours to his in return. It’s how unicorns greet each other and declare themselves friends to each other rather than enemies. Don’t be afraid, he won’t hurt you, and I’m right here.”

Cassandra stood stock still, her eyes wide as saucers as the huge animal approached her. As its muzzle came towards her face, she closed her eyes shut to steady her nerves. A few seconds later she felt the soft, warm skin barely brush the tip of her nose, a warm gust of mossy-scented breath gently blowing over her chin, and then it was gone. She blinked open her eyes and saw the unicorn eyeing her expectantly. Without even thinking, she leaned forward and quickly touched the end of her nose to Roger’s muzzle. Satisfied, Roger pawed the ground and turned back to the other unicorns waiting in the tree line. He made a soft nickering sound, and they, too began to approach. As they did, Jenkins gave her a quick hug.

“Well done, Cassandra!” he rumbled. “Roger likes you, I can tell.” Cassandra only grinned in reply, her eyes sparkling with excitement; he smiled and gave her another one-armed hug.

“Would you like to ride one?” he asked impulsively. Cassandra whipped her head around to face him, her jaw hanging.

“You can ride them?!” she squeaked. The Caretaker chuckled delightedly at her response.

“Of course, my dear! You stay here, now, and wait for me. I’m going to introduce this little one to his new mother—she’s the small, palomino-colored one over there on the end,” he said as he began to remove the halter and bridle from the squirming colt. “That’s Ida. I’ll only be a few minutes. Remember, if any of them greet you, simply greet them in return and you’ll be fine. When I’m done we’ll go for a little ride.” He dropped the tack onto the ground and led the baby over to the anxiously waiting mother.

Cassandra was beside herself with excitement. _She was going to ride a unicorn! _Just wait until she told Jake and Ezekiel about this! She bounced slightly on her toes in eagerness.__

__As she watched Jenkins lead the little unicorn over to its new mother and make the introductions, Cassandra felt something gently tug on her sleeve. She turned her head and nearly jumped out of her skin at the sight of a unicorn standing right next to her; she hadn’t even heard it approach. Suddenly remembering her manners, she turned to the beast and waited. The unicorn, a large buckskin-colored animal, stretched out its muzzle and gingerly touched her nose. Smiling, the Librarian leaned forward and touched her nose to the unicorn’s. It pawed the ground as Roger had, and Cassandra took that to mean that the unicorn approved of her. Pleased with herself, she reached out carefully and lightly patted the animal’s nose._ _

__“What’s this one’s name?” she called over her shoulder. Jenkins glanced briefly in her direction._ _

__“Tim,” he called back. Cassandra rolled her eyes. Jenkins really needed help when it came to naming things._ _

__The unicorn moved closer and nudged her shoulder, so she patted his strong neck and started scratching his ears as she had seen Jenkins do with Roger. Tim made a sighing sound and lowered his head so she could more easily reach him._ _

__“You like that, huh, Tim?” she asked him quietly as she continued to scratch with both hands now. The unicorn huffed and moved even closer, lightly nibbling the hem of her skirt and nudging her legs. She carefully pushed him away from her skirt and he raised his head to lick her cheek, his smooth tongue tickling her and making her giggle._ _

__“Well, you’re certainly a friendly one, aren’t you?” she exclaimed, pleased to have won over one of the creatures so quickly on her own. As she scratched beneath the sociable animal’s chin, she spied a large fallen tree nearby, and an idea came to mind. She backed slowly towards the tree, and to her delight Tim followed her. She quickly climbed up onto the tree trunk. As the unicorn swung his body around parallel to the trunk, she patted his back and scratched his ears. She’d ridden horses at the various STEM camps she went to every summer as a kid; how much different could a unicorn be? With a final glance over at Jenkins, still occupied with the baby unicorn, she quickly slid onto the back of the pale yellow unicorn._ _

__The instant Tim felt her unfamiliar weight on his back, the unicorn reared up on his hind legs and screeched in panic. Cassandra instinctively grabbed the animal’s mane with both hands and held on, screaming in terror. The sudden, loud sounds spooked the other unicorns, and they bolted into the safety of the forest. Only Roger hung back, concerned for the member of his herd now frantically trying to buck the screeching Librarian from his back. As soon as Jenkins, who was on his knees, heard the unicorn’s cry of distress, he whipped around, his heart stopping in his chest as he took in the sight of Cassandra clinging desperately to the unicorn like a burr. He scrambled to his feet as fast as he could and started towards the spooked beast, but it was too late. Unable to throw the strange, screaming creature from his back, Tim turned and ran towards the safety of the forest._ _

__“CASSANDRA!” Jenkins shouted, fear for her safety driving him to action without stopping to think: If the unicorn managed to dislodge Cassandra from his back, there was a very good chance that he would come back and try to kill her. IF she survived the fall itself._ _

__He ran towards the lagging unicorn, whistling sharply as a signal to Roger what he was going to do. Roger turned so that his side was facing Jenkins, just in time for the old knight to seize his dark silver mane and vault onto the big steel-dust’s back. Jenkins grabbed more of the beast’s mane with his other hand._ _

__“Hah!” he shouted, kicking his heels hard into Roger’s ribs. The unicorn lurched forward and shot into the forest in hot pursuit of Cassandra._ _


	4. Chapter 4

The unicorn flew through the forest, impossibly dodging trees and leaping over logs and stones like a vengeful spirit. Cassandra clung desperately to the animal’s back, her hands clutching his mane so tightly that her fingernails dug into the palms of her hands through the silken strands. Her clothes were soon in shreds, and her face, arms and legs were cut and bleeding from the branches and undergrowth that whipped and clawed her as they flew by. She laid against the panicked creature’s neck, face pressed hard against the satiny coat, her eyes shut tightly as she screamed in terror, shrieking especially loudly whenever Tim lithely jumped an obstacle, sending her flying into the air momentarily. She heard trees whiz by her, heard the unicorn huffing loudly as he ran pell-mell through the thick forest, plunging them deeper and deeper into it. Occasionally he would buck sharply, still trying to dislodge the unwanted thing on his back. As if the heart-pounding ride wasn’t enough, Cassandra dimly realized through her fright that even if she somehow managed to get off of the unicorn’s back in one piece, it was going to take her hours to find her way back to the door to the Library, IF she could find it at all. She had no idea where she was or how large the forest was. How before they found her. She could be here lost here for days, maybe even weeks, she realized with despair. Oh, WHY hadn’t she waited for Jenkins? She may never get out of here now! 

Suddenly she felt warmth on her skin and the light on the other side of her closed eyelids became brighter. She cracked her eyes open and saw that they had left the forest and entered another clearing, this one much larger than the one she and Jenkins had been in. This was more like an open meadow, gently rolling and grass-covered, dotted only here and there with trees and small bushes. She braved a quick look around her, but saw nothing that could possibly help her out of this predicament.

Unbeknownst to Cassandra, a few hundred yards behind her Jenkins was thundering madly through the forest on Roger. The huge unicorn flew through the trees like a bolt out of a crossbow, but even though he was bigger and stronger than Cassandra’s unicorn, Roger bore a much heavier weight and it slowed him down. It had been a very long time since Jenkins had last gone for a ride as wild and reckless as this, but all he could think of was Cassandra and her safety. He let Roger worry about picking their way through the forest; the immortal kept his eyes peeled for any sign of his Librarian. He caught occasional glimpses of color darting far ahead among the dark trees, each precious glimpse giving him renewed hope that he could catch up to her before any disaster befell her. If he lived to be a million years old, he would never forgive himself if anything happened to her now because of his stupidity.

He saw the tree line approaching ahead; as they burst out of the woods and into the meadow, he caught sight of a spark of red far ahead of them—Cassandra’s bright red sweater and tights. Jenkins leaned forward, lying against Roger’s powerful neck.

“There she is!” he yelled eagerly to the unicorn. He was relieved to see that she was miraculously still on Tim, and part of him couldn’t help but be proud of her. Unicorns were notoriously difficult to break to the saddle, even for one as experienced as himself. It was amazing that she’d managed to keep her seat for so long.

“Just a little more from you, old man, and we’ll have her!” he called out to Roger, then lightly spurred the unicorn on. Roger, with a loud snort and bellowing sides, poured on even more speed on the open ground. For an instant, the wind rushing over his face and through his hair and the pounding of hooves on the ground made Jenkins feel like a young knight again, his heart hammering with excitement and fear in his chest as he raced to a maiden’s rescue, mounted on a fine charger. He shook his head and frowned at his foolishness, and forced his attention back to the problem at hand. Roger was burning up the distance between them and Cassandra. Jenkins sat up partially and shouted to her, but she didn’t respond.

As she raced along the open ground, Cassandra began to despair that this creature would ever slow down on his own. She started pulling hard on his mane, tearfully pleading for Tim to ‘whoa’, but he only ran faster, frightened even more by the strange creature on his back that was now pulling on his hair. Her tailbone was beginning to hurt from all of the uncontrolled bouncing, and her hands and arms were aching from hanging on so tightly. 

As they topped a small rise Cassandra—and the unicorn—saw too late the downed tree in front of them. Tim suddenly halted his headlong flight, bracing his front legs stiffly in front of himself and lowering his head skidded to a stop, coming to a halt just short of the tree trunk. Cassandra was flung off of the animal’s back by her forward momentum, her terrified screaming cut suddenly short as she crashed into the rough bark of the fallen oak. The last thing she heard before everything went black was the sound of breaking ribs and the distant voice of Jenkins.

“CASSANDRA!” shrieked the immortal, now only fifty yards away, as he saw Cassandra thrown from the unicorn and go sailing into tree, her screams turning his blood to ice-water in his veins. He quickly looked to see where her unicorn had gone, and was horrified to see Tim trotting back in her direction. Jenkins knew what he was intending to do: Unicorns did not believe in letting an enemy live to fight another day. They almost always killed them on the spot, thus assuring that there would be no future danger to the herd from this particular threat. The fact that Cassandra was unconscious on the ground made no difference. Tim meant to finish her off.

“HO!” he shouted as he sat back from Roger’s neck and pulled hard on his mane. The big unicorn immediately responded, slowing his pace and partially sitting back on his haunches as he slid several yards, Jenkins jumping off his back before he even came to a complete stop. The immortal stripped off his now ruined coat as he ran towards the fallen woman, waving it and shouting at the angry unicorn in an attempt to distract and frighten him off before he gored her. His long legs ate up the distance within a few seconds, but he was too late. He cried out in horror as the unicorn, now on top of Cassandra, reared up and, lowering his head, plunged his horn through the upper part of her chest.

Jenkins, screaming wordlessly the entire way, tried to run even faster than he already was. He saw the unicorn rip his horn from Cassandra’s chest with a sickening spray of blood and rear up again for another strike. By now the knight was on them, and he launched himself forward, aiming for Cassandra as he sought to protect her from any further injury. He landed on top of her just as the unicorn dropped, this time running Jenkins through the lower right portion of his back. The man bellowed in pain as he felt the unicorn’s horn grinding against the top edge of his hip bone.

The beast jerked his horn out and reared up for yet another blow. Jenkins rolled over onto his back and waited, doing his best to ignore the excruciating pain in his side. If he timed it right, perhaps he could kick the unicorn in the head as he tried to skewer him; perhaps that would be enough to drive him off. He quickly tested lifting his right leg, and cried out at the pain. The left leg would have to do. If not, Cassandra was dead, and he might not be far behind—a unicorn’s horn was a weapon of tremendous magical power—maybe even enough power to kill an immortal.

The knight waited for what seemed like an eternity for the strike. As he saw Tim lower his head and begin his downward drive, his bloody horn aimed at the man’s chest now, Jenkins braced and prepared to defend himself and Cassandra as best he could. 

Jenkins kicked out at Tim’s head, but the wily unicorn saw it coming and moved his head to avoid the brunt of the blow at the last second. The immortal instinctively reached out both of his hands to try and shove the animal’s head in another direction, and he was somehow able to grasp the animal’s horn. It was too slick with blood though, for Jenkins to get a good purchase on it. His hands slid up the twisted bone protuberance towards Tim’s forehead, one of the raised, sharp ridges slicing open his palms as they slid over it. It was enough interference, however, to deflect the deadly horn from going straight through the old knight’s chest. Instead, it only pieced him through the shoulder, momentarily pinning him the ground until Tim reared back again, tearing the horn out and freeing him.

Tim, now thoroughly enraged, shook his head and viciously pawed the ground before rearing for a third time. Jenkins knew he couldn’t fight the animal off like this, alone, injured, and with Cassandra even more seriously injured and in need of medical help. He hated to do this—unicorns were so rare and each was precious—but he had no other choice if he was going to save Cassandra. The Caretaker took a deep breath and produced a sound that no other human being on earth could: The alarm call used by a herd leader to call other unicorns to kill an attacker. 

Just as Tim was about to begin his downward plunge to gore Jenkins, the animal suddenly screeched in pain of his own as Roger rammed into his side, the old unicorn plunging his horn straight into the younger one’s heart. Tim was knocked off-balance, dead before he even hit the ground. As he lay motionless, Roger approached him warily and sniffed, prodding the carcass with his nose until he was satisfied that the attacker was dead. He snorted in satisfaction and then wandered over to nuzzle his injured human friend.

Jenkins reached out a throbbing, bloody hand to touch the light gray head and made the unicorn vocalization that indicated gratitude. He then forced himself into a sitting position, gritting his teeth against the pain in his hip and shoulder. He turned gingerly to Cassandra, grabbing her wrist to check for a pulse. He heaved a deep sigh of relief as he felt the faint beating beneath his fingers. 

He dropped her arm and moved to sit next her. He couldn’t resist the desire to scoop her up and hold her in his arms, gently pressing her to his chest and rocking with her for a few seconds as he desperately fought back tears and hoarsely whispered reassurances into her unhearing ears, but he then quickly pulled himself together; there was no time for emotionalism, he needed to get her back to the Library. Now. 

The distraught man began rapidly checking her for injuries, forcing himself to ignore the pain in his hands. Miraculously none of her arms or legs were broken, her hips felt fine, and her neck seemed to be alright. He gently checked her skull but could find no injury there. He was certain, though, that she had several cracked or broken ribs, and, of course, there was probably a concussion. He next examined the puncture wound in her chest from the unicorn’s horn. 

It was a nasty injury; the horn had gone all the way through her chest, just below her right collarbone. Both the entry and exit wounds were bleeding badly. He had to get her out of here and back to the Library as fast as possible, otherwise she would bleed to death. Jenkins didn’t want to risk moving her without knowing if she had any internal injuries, but he had no choice. If he left her here to go get help, she would certainly die. 

His system now flooded with fresh adrenaline and driven by his need to get Cassandra back to the Library, Jenkins forced himself to pick her up in his arms bridal-style, then painfully got to his feet, involuntarily crying out against the pain. He limped to the fallen tree and slowly, carefully climbed up onto it, paying especial attention to his footing. He whistled for Roger, now grazing obliviously several yards off. He immediately trotted over and stood next to the trunk, patiently allowing the injured Caretaker to ease onto his back. The immortal, gasping harshly with pain as he forced his right leg over the animal’s back, gently positioned Cassandra’s limp body so that she sat in front of him on the unicorn. Jenkins reached out and grasped an excruciating handful of the unicorn’s mane with one hand, using the other hand to steady Cassandra and keep her body back against his chest, his damaged hand clamped firmly over her chest wound in an attempt to at least slow her bleeding. Using his knees to steer the unicorn, he turned Roger back towards the forest and kicked the animal into a canter; he didn’t dare go faster for fear of losing his hold on Cassandra.

“Take us back to the door, Roger,” he half-choked, half-sobbed, the pain in his hip, shoulder and hands almost unbearable. Roger huffed in response and headed off for the woods. Jenkins estimated that at this pace it would take at least an hour to get back to the door, probably longer. He was desperate to get her out of here, but there was no room for error now. If he fell off his mount or dropped Cassandra, he may never be able to get back on the unicorn, and it would take him far too long to carry her through the thick forest himself. He gritted his teeth and focused all of his concentration and strength on staying upright and on the back of the unicorn, praying all the while that he wouldn’t be too late to save Cassandra.


	5. Chapter 5

Jenkins jerked the door leading into the Library open and staggered out into the hallway, the dead weight of Cassandra almost too much for him to carry by now. As soon as the door was open he began shouting for help, all the while hobbling agonizingly down the corridor as he made his way back to the Annex. It was his good fortune that Jacob Stone was anxiously looking for Cassandra at that moment; the two of them had made an ‘art date’ to visit the Tate Modern in London, and they were supposed to be there for two hours ago. When she never showed up at the back door or called to let him know she was going to be late, Stone became concerned and went in search of her.

The young historian heard Jenkins’s frantic shouting and ran towards the sound. The sight that greeted him when he rounded the corner and found the Caretaker shocked him into stunned silence. The tall immortal, completely disheveled, his suit torn and dirty, was staggering towards the Stone. Blood covered the tall man’s entire right leg, his chest and his hands. He saw an equally-disheveled and blood-covered Cassandra in Jenkins’s arms, limp and pale as a bed sheet. 

“Mr. Stone! Help me, please!” Jenkins begged, snapping Stone out of his shock. Jake ran forward and took Cassandra from the exhausted Caretaker.

“What the hell happened, Jenkins? What happened to Cassie?” he demanded. Jenkins waved his hand in dismissal.

“I’ll explain later, Mr. Stone,” he said shortly. “Please take Cassandra to the infirmary! Get the others. I’ll need everyone’s help.” Jake hesitated for a moment.

“Shouldn’t I call 911?” he asked, starting to dig his phone out of his pocket. 

“No!” Jenkins snapped. “A hospital will do her no good. This is a magical wound, we’ll have to take care of her ourselves. Please, Mr. Stone, I can’t hold onto her much longer!” Jacob shoved his phone back into his jeans and quickly took Cassandra from him. Relieved of his burden, Jenkins limped as fast as he could down the hallway after Stone. Jake turned and stopped, waiting for the injured man to catch up.

“Don’t wait for me—Go! Get her to infirmary and try to staunch the bleeding! I’ll be there soon enough!” Stone turned and ran down the hallway with Cassandra.

By the time Jenkins got to the Library’s recently-added infirmary, Eve Baird and Ezekiel Jones had joined Jake. All three were frantically trying to stop the injured Librarian’s bleeding, or at least to slow it down, with little success. Baird was the first to spot the limping, battered immortal.

“ _Jesus _, Jenkins! What the hell happened to Cassandra?” she barked, then his own condition registered with the Guardian. “Jesus, Jenkins, what the hell happened to YOU?”__

__He shook his head and hurried over to Cassandra, his insides feeling cold and numb with dread. Her top had been stripped off and the gaping wound washed out. Baird had a thick pad of sterile gauze pressed hard against Cassandra’s chest, but it clearly was still seeping blood at an alarming rate. Jenkins turned to the others._ _

__“Mr. Stone, I need for you to fetch me the surgical case, quickly!” he ordered gruffly, gasping against his own pain._ _

__“On it!” snapped Jake and disappeared. Jenkins then looked towards Ezekiel._ _

__“Mr. Jones, please go to my lab and find the long, narrow case covered in blue leather; it should be in the upper left side of the glass-fronted cabinet to left as you go through the door. Bring it here as fast as you can!”_ _

__“Right!” Jones tuned and bolted form the infirmary. The Caretaker next turned to Eve._ _

__“Colonel Baird, I will need your assistance here. Please get Cassandra ready for surgery; there’s sterile cloths and alcohol over there in the cabinet. It’s not ideal, but we don’t have time for the niceties. I’ll need your help when the others return.” Eve ran over to the cabinet he indicated and began pulling out white sheets and bottles of disinfectant._ _

__“Jenkins, what’s happened? How did you and Cassandra get hurt like this? Jacob said it was a magical injury,” she demanded again while she worked. Jenkins dropped heavily into a chair, gritting his teeth at the pain, but otherwise refusing to make a sound. He didn’t want the others distracted from Cassandra._ _

__“We were attacked by a unicorn,” he breathed, trying to make his voice sound as normal as possible. He struggled back to his aching feet, the pain in his hip being intolerable in a sitting position._ _

__Eve ran back to the table with the items he’d requested. She removed Cassandra’s bra, then wiped her down with the alcohol, pouring some of into the wound itself as she double-checked for any debris that might still be in it. She next stripped off the rest of the Librarian’s dirty, torn clothing and proceeded to clean her up as best she could while waiting for the men to return. Eve then spread the sterile cloths over the unconscious woman, covering her body except for the area where the wound was located. By then Jake and Ezekiel were back._ _

__“Mr. Jones, open the case and bring me the horn that’s inside of it! Mr. Stone, the bone saw, if you please!” the immortal instructed the younger men while Eve quickly helped Jenkins to wash his hands. As the dried and encrusted blood washed away, she gasped in shock at the sight of his damaged palms, cleanly sliced nearly to the bone._ _

__“ _Jenkins...! _” she began, but he cut her off.___ _

____“I’m sorry, Colonel, but there’s no time for that right now! The alcohol, please!” He held out his hands out over the sink bowl expectantly. Eve looked at him like he was crazy._ _ _ _

____“You can’t be serious!” she protested._ _ _ _

____“ _Colonel Baird! _” he bellowed, losing his patience as precious seconds were lost with all of the protesting. “ _Do as I say! _”_____ _ _ _

________Taken aback by his outburst, Eve fell silent and doused the Caretaker’s damaged hands with alcohol. Jenkins screamed sharply at the agonizing fire that shot up both of his arms and he dropped onto his forearms on the edge of the sink helplessly while his hands throbbed. Tears filled his eyes and flowed onto his pales cheeks as he waited for the initial wave of pain to fade to something tolerable. Eve and Jake, their nerves considerably jangled by what had just happened, exchanged worried glances, but held their tongues as they both quickly wrapped a bit of clean gauze around the palms of damaged hands._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Meanwhile, Jones opened the case, his eyes widening momentarily as he beheld the long, thin, snow-white horn of a unicorn nestled within. He plucked it from the case and rushed it over to Jenkins. He grabbed the horn from Ezekiel, then looked at Eve._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Lift her up and hold her steady, Colonel. I must insert the horn into the wound to stop the bleeding, then cut off and sew it into her,” he began to explain, wrapping a cloth around the butt of the horn so that he could grasp it more easily._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“What?!” she yelped as she grabbed his wrist. “You’re going to kill her!” Jenkins turned to stare her in the eyes; for the first time she saw the pain and desperation that filled his, and she let go of him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“She was wounded by the horn of a unicorn,” he said, his voice ragged with emotion and agony. “Only a unicorn horn can save her, Colonel! This one has been magically prepared for use in healing. I have to implant a portion of this horn into her wound and sew it up. As it dissolves, it will heal her injuries! It’s the only thing that can save her, Colonel, but I must do it now, before it’s too late—if it’s not too late already! Now, hold her up, Colonel Baird, PLEASE!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Eve looked over at Ezekiel. “Jones, with me,” she snapped. The Australian instantly moved to the other side of the table from Baird. “On three, help me lift her up—One, two, three!” Together they pushed Cassandra up into a sitting position. The sheet covering her slipped down, exposing her bare breasts; Ezekiel quickly grabbed the sheet and pulled it up, then held it in place with one hand. Jenkins noticed the gesture and gave him a small, weak smile in thanks._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The immortal grasped Cassandra’s right shoulder with his left hand as he adjusted his grip on the unicorn horn with his right. He brought the sharp point of the horn to the gaping wound and paused for a moment, steeling himself for had to be done._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Forgive me, Cassandra,” he whispered, then shoved the horn into the wound until it exited through the hole in her back, a loud whimper sounding deep in his throat. He knew she was unconscious and didn’t feel anything, but Jenkins was still upset at having to ‘injure’ her again intentionally. He instructed Jacob on how to saw off the ends of the horn, leaving it just long enough to fit inside the length of the wound, the ends countersunk beneath the surface of her skin. Jenkins then began to stitch the wound in her chest closed with suture, his bloody fingers shaking badly and moving slowly. Eve, who had sewn up her own share of wounded comrades in her NATO days, delicately took the needle away from him._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“It’s okay, Jenkins, I’ve got this,” she said gently, and proceeded to rapidly stitch up the wounds. Jenkins gratefully stepped back and allowed her to work, but refused to relax until Cassandra’s wounds were completely closed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________When the last stitch was in place, Eve dropped the needle and scissors onto the tray and straightened up, relieved. The bleeding had finally stopped. Unicorn horn was a powerful medicine, Jenkins informed them while Eve worked on the stricken Librarian, and with luck they had gotten it into the wound in time. The immortal looked at Eve with tired eyes._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Just to be on the safe side, we should also give her powdered unicorn horn mixed with water. One teaspoon mixed into one cup of water.” His eyelids began to blink rapidly as he spoke, and the tall man swayed slightly. Eve immediately became alarmed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Jenkins? Are you all right?” she asked. He continued talking as though he hadn’t heard her._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“One cup of water every...two...two...hours. There’s powdered...lab...” Shock, blood loss and exhaustion finally caught up to him, and unable to fight off unconsciousness any longer, the Caretaker’s eyes rolled back into his head, his lids fluttering closed as he crumpled in a heap onto the floor._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Jenkins!” all three shouted in alarm. They rushed to the fallen man’s side, and Eve began to examine his injuries._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Dammit! He needs more stitching that she did! You two move Cassandra to a bed while I get some of these clothes off of him!” she barked at the young men. They immediately scrambled to carry out her order. By the time they had moved Cassandra to a bed and thrown some blankets over her, Baird was in the process of pulling off Jenkins’s undershirt._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Holy shit!” she breathed, shocked by the sight of the many scars and tattoos scattered over the old immortal’s body._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The first thing Jake noticed was the tattoos, the various styles covering a span of centuries—Celtic, Viking, Anglo-Saxon, Teutonic. Ezekiel’s gaze immediately fell onto the horrific scar nearly covering the length of Jenkins’s left arm, and for a moment he felt sick. As a child living on the streets of Sydney, he’d seen those kinds of bite marks more times than he could count, though none this severe. At least not on anyone who survived, that is. No wonder the old man freaked out around rats..._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Even snapped them back to the task at hand. “Pull him up so I see his back,” she ordered. Stone and Jones each pulled gently on one arm, carefully pulling the heavy man into a sitting position. Eve’s eyes closed involuntarily in revulsion at the sight of all of the long, white, heavy scars that crisscrossed Jenkins’s entire back. “Christ!” she breathed. Stone immediately moved so he could see what was wrong, and he, too, was shocked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Damn!” he gasped. “Looks like someone took a bullwhip to him.” Eve shuddered. When did this happen? He must have been nearly flayed alive, judging from the heavy scarring. How could anyone do this to another human being? What had Jenkins done that would deserve something like this? If this was an indicator of the kind of life he’s had to suffer through all these years, it shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone, then, that he would eventually prefer to shut himself up alone inside the Library._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Baird shook her head as she forced herself to focus on his current injuries. She had a lot of questions for the old soldier, but they would have to wait until he recovered._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Get that table cleaned off and set up for him,” she instructed the others. “Looks like we’ve got a lot more patching up to do. I just hope there’s enough of that horn left for Jenkins!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	6. Chapter 6

_Jenkins leaped off of the back of the steel-dust unicorn and streaked towards Cassandra, wildly waving his arms and shouting, trying desperately to scare off the angry buckskin unicorn, but it was no use. It reared up, and as Jenkins watched in powerless, sickening horror, it dropped back to the ground and ran Cassandra through the chest with its horn as she screamed the knight’s name._

_“Cassandra!” Jenkins cried in anguish, rushing to her side and throwing himself onto the ground next to her. The unicorn was gone now; he didn’t see where it went, nor did he care. His entire world right now was Cassandra, lying on the ground and gasping desperately for breath, crimson blood gushing from her chest._

_He gathered her up into his arms, tears blinding him momentarily until they began to fall from his eyes. The immortal frantically stroked her messy red hair and kissed her head over and over, mumbling her name and begging her to hold on as he gently rocked with her, one hand futilely trying to staunch the blood. The wounded Librarian’s hand weakly brushed his face, and he stopped rocking long enough to pull back so he could see her face. Jenkins laid his blood-covered hand on her white cheek as he fought back sobs._

_“I’m sorry, Galahad,” she whispered. He wiped a tear from her eye, smudging her translucent skin with a smear of red, then combed his fingers through the hair at her temple._

_“You have nothing to apologize for, my love,” he said, fighting to keep his voice steady and encouraging. “Nothing! Now don’t talk; save your strength, Cassandra, please!”_

_“I’m sorry, Galahad,” she repeated, her lids slowly slipping over her beautiful blue eyes, her voice barely above a whisper this time. “I’m sorry I wasn’t as good as Charlene. We might’ve been so happy…” She drew a deep, gently gurgling breath, then sighed raggedly. And she was gone._

_Jenkins stared at her, his mind blank and numb with disbelief for several seconds, his blood pounding in his head. As the reality that Cassandra was dead sank in, grief welled up inside of him and poured out like a flood. He clutched her lifeless body to his chest, buried his face in her hair and began to sob. He wailed her name over and over and unconsciously began to rock with her again, his heart feeling as though someone had ripped it out of his chest._

His eyes snapped open and he lay frozen on his back for several seconds, disoriented. He felt his heart thundering against his ribs, his breath coming in short gasps. _It was only a nightmare,_ he told himself with relief. He moved his eyes around the room, not recognizing it for a moment, then it came to him: This was the infirmary. Memories began to wash back into his consciousness then—the Tree, the argument with Cassandra, the unicorns. Cassandra was attacked by a unicorn!

Jenkins tried to sit up, but a scorching pain in his side pinned him back to the bed. He then remembered that he had been attacked also. Frantically he turned his head to look at the beds next to him; Cassandra was to his right, still unconscious, or perhaps merely sleeping? He couldn’t tell. He called her name, but she didn’t respond.

The Caretaker, determined to go to her, forced himself up, clenching his jaw against the razor-sharp pain in his hands, shoulder and side as he tried to use them. He swung his bare feet out of the bed and touched them to the floor. The cool tile beneath them brought him to the realization that he was naked. Looking down at his right hip, he saw an angry, red wound hidden beneath a gauze pad, stitched up tight and surrounded by ugly purple-black bruising that bloomed out around the injury. He took a quick peek under the bandages of one hand and cringed slightly at what he saw. He must not have been out for very long, he hadn’t healed very much yet.

He looked for something to put around himself, but all he had to hand was the bed sheet. He carefully stood up and pulled the sheet from the bed, draping and tucking it around his waist like a bath towel. He then hobbled painfully over the short distance to Cassandra’s bedside.

Jenkins caught his breath at how pale she was, almost chalk-white. He gently lifted the sheet covering her to peer at the wound to her chest, but found it covered by a bandage. He very carefully peeled back the tape holding the pad in place, and was shocked to see the ugly mess the unicorn had made of her once flawless, porcelain skin. As he looked down into her still countenance the memory of the attack, mixed with the fresh, raw memories of his nightmare, flooded back to him. He laid a bandaged hand on her scratched and bruised face and blinked against tears as he leaned over to kiss her cool, dry lips, then laid his forehead against hers.

“I’m sorry, Cassandra!” he rasped, failing to maintain control of his emotions now that he was free to give vent to them. The pain in his heart outstripping the pain in his body, he leaned over again to hold her in his arms as best he could, as closely as he could without exacerbating her injuries.

“I’m so sorry!” he repeated. “I never should’ve offered the ride! I should’ve warned you! I never should have taken you to the Forest in the first place! This is all my fault! I’m so sorry!” As he spoke he became increasingly overwrought. Within moments he was beside himself with self-recrimination and grief, and tears rolled down his careworn face as he broke down.

“Forgive me, Cassandra!” he wept miserably into her ear as he stroked her tangled hair. “I should’ve kissed you under the Tree, I should’ve kissed you right there! If I had, none of this would’ve happened! I’m sorry, Cassandra, please forgive me! If I had it to do over again, I would, I swear it! I was a fool! I need you, Cassandra! Please, _please_ don’t go, my love, it’s too soon, I’ve only just found you! Please don’t leave me here alone! _Please_ , Cassandra, please stay here with me!” As he tearfully pleaded with the unconscious woman, he peppered her hand, cheeks, forehead and lips with kisses and gently brushed her face with his fingers.

Eve Baird stood just outside the door, listening to everything, her hand covering her mouth and blinking back tears of her own. She hadn’t meant to eavesdrop; she’d come only to check on the patients. But when she heard Jenkins speaking with so much emotion in his voice, it stopped her in her tracks. She’d never before heard him sound so vulnerable. So...scared. He’d always been tough, hardbitten, unflappable old Jenkins. He was Galahad, a knight of Camelot, for Christ’s sake—he’d faced down all sorts of terrifying monsters and situations in his life without batting an eye. But here he was, practically on his knees, begging the woman he loved not to die and leave him alone.

Eve took a deep breath and quietly tiptoed a short distance back up the hallway, quietly removing a set of keys from her pocket as she did. She pasted a detached look of concern onto her face, then made conspicuous walking noises, purposely dropping her keys to the floor and mumbling loudly to herself in irritation as she picked them up so that Jenkins would hear her coming. She paused outside of the door for a moment, then strode into the infirmary. Jenkins was still at Cassandra’s bedside, but his eyes were dry now and he looked completely composed. Eve played along with him.

“What do you think you’re doing?!” she exclaimed loudly. “You get back into this bed right now, mister!” She hurried over to help him climb back into his own bed. He tried not to let her see it, but she could tell he was in agony. “How are you feeling, Jenkins? Need something for the pain?”

He grunted noncommittally as he adjusted the sheet and blankets over himself. “I’ll be fine,” he said, a sour expression on his face as he gingerly tried to make himself comfortable. “A couple more days and I’ll be upright again. I presume I have you to thank for stitching me up?” Eve nodded as she stood at his bedside, not pushing the pain issue. She had to force herself to not stare at his collection of scars, especially the horrific one on his left arm. She noticed that he quickly slipped it under the blankets as soon as he was able. Even though Cassandra had told Eve about them on their girls’ nights out, Eve hadn’t been prepared for the severity of the scars. Now she knew why he kept himself covered up all of the time.

She saw a shadow of worry darken the old Caretaker’s eyes as she inadvertently blocked his view of Cassandra in the next bed, and she discreetly repositioned herself so he could see her again.

“And I don’t mind telling you that you scared the hell out of us, too,” she said reprovingly. “Immortals aren’t supposed to pass out, you know!” Jenkins made another sour face.

“Even semi-immortals have their limits, I’m afraid,” he said. “How many hours was I out?”

“Twenty-four.” The man did a double-take and then stared at the Guardian unbelievingly.

“Twenty...?” Realization suddenly dawned on him and he quickly lifted the covers to examine his wound again. He dropped the blankets and looked wonderingly at Baird. “This was a magical wound—How did you stop the bleeding?” he asked. Eve shrugged.

“I did for you what you did for Cassandra. Jammed the unicorn horn into your hip and shoulder, cut it off, stitched it in. Couldn’t do that with your hands, of course. Jones suggested rubbing some of that powdered unicorn horn into those cuts. Seems to have worked pretty good, too, if I do say so myself.”

“Ah, I see. The ‘what’s good for the goose must therefore be good for the gander’ school of medicine,” the immortal grumbled. “Yes, well, fortunately for you that particular treatment translates very well from a mortal to an immortal. Otherwise you might very well have finished what that unicorn started!”

“You’re welcome,” Baird said, purposely making her tone sarcastic. “What the hell happened, Jenkins? How did you two get attacked by a unicorn?” she asked. The Caretaker sighed and gave her a brief synopsis of the incident in the Unicorn Forest, though Eve noted that he mentioned nothing about the ‘kissing under a tree’ thing that he’d been so upset about earlier.

By the time he was finished with his story, Eve had a new respect for the old soldier and his sheer grit. Even though he was immortal, his injuries were still serious; to be able to drag a person’s dead weight onto the back of an unpredictable animal, then hold onto it while trying to both stop the bleeding and trying to keep both them from falling off of the animal as it moved through an obstacle-strewn forest for more than an hour, and then carrying that body the distance that he had through the Library—not to mention then performing surgery on the injured Librarian before passing out himself—that was nothing short of amazing in her book.

In the silence that fell between them, a contrite expression overtook Jenkins’s face.

“I _am_ grateful, Colonel Baird, especially for your and the others’ help with Cassandra’s operation. I know that I could never have done it by myself. You saved Cassandra’s life and I will forever be grateful to you for that. I apologize if I seemed churlish earlier. The injuries I received…” Eve waved his apology away.

“I get it, Skippy,” she said kindly. “You’re in awful pain—“ She bent over and laid her hand over his heart. “—Right there. And you’re trying very hard to hide it from me. And, no, don’t bother trying to deny it, either, because I know you are.” She carefully sat on the edge of his bed and slipped her arms around his disfigured shoulders, secretly gratified by his startled reaction. She gave him a long, warm hug, being careful of his injuries, and softly grazed his temple with her lips. Timidly Jenkins slipped his arms around her waist and let his head lean against hers for a moment, his eyes closed as he accepted the comfort she offered him.

“This isn’t your fault, Jenkins. Cassandra’s going to be all right,” she said softly. Realizing that Eve had overhead him earlier, he raised his head and quickly withdrew his arms self-consciously. He swallowed hard, embarrassed.

“Yes. Well,” was all he could say. Eve could hear the strain in his voice as he struggled not to break down in front of her. She gave him another quick hug and then stood up briskly.

“And since I know that as soon as I leave the room you’re going to get right back out of bed again, I’ll go get you some pajamas to wear before someone accidentally sees something that will give them nightmares for life!” she teased, pointedly looking down at the area of his groin; the immortal blushed as he realized that it had been Eve who had removed all of his clothes.

“Don’t worry, Jenkins, I’ve seen so many naked guys by now… Wait, that didn’t come out quite right, did it?” the Guardian joked, enticing a small smile from the injured man. As Eve started away from his bedside, Jenkins unexpectedly grabbed her hand and held it as he glanced earnestly into her eyes and nodded.

“Thank you, Eve. For everything.” Baird smiled and gave his hand a quick squeeze.

“Don’t mention it, Skippy.”


	7. Chapter 7

Eve managed to keep Jenkins in his bed for a full day before he forced himself up, showered and put on a proper suit. His first task after that was to go back to the Unicorn Forest and retrieve his ruined suit coat, the halter, bridle and any other foreign objects he or Cassandra had left behind in the unicorns’ habitat. He then turned his attention to the burial of Tim’s carcass; that was completely beyond his abilities in his current state, so he reluctantly asked Jacob and Ezekiel for their help. The two young men were secretly thrilled to be taken to the Forest, though they kept their excitement hidden from the grieving Caretaker out of respect for his loss. Their excitement soon turned to sadness once they were actually inside the Forest, however. The moment they walked through the door, Jenkins’s mood plummeted. He became quiet and somber, and they could tell that he was struggling to maintain his composure in front of them as they hiked through the Forest towards the meadow.

After three hours they arrived at the fallen tree. Jenkins was limping badly by then, but he didn’t complain. The two younger men tiredly dropped the picks, shovels and other tools onto the ground and quietly waited for instructions. Each eyed the large animal, now in the very early stages of decomposition, impressed that they could get this close to a unicorn, even if it was a dead one. They also took in the churned up turf, dark with dried blood. After a few moments to allow them all to catch their breath, the immortal turned to the men.

“I’d like to have a few minutes alone, if I may, gentlemen,” he said quietly. Jake tapped Ezekiel on the arm and led him away to stand several yards off from the old man. The two watched in respectful silence as Jenkins approached the carcass and carefully knelt on the ground next to it. He laid a hand on Tim’s neck and patted it affectionately, speaking quietly to the unfortunate animal with words they couldn’t hear. After several minutes, the pair saw Jenkins pull his handkerchief from his trousers pocket and wipe his eyes with it. He turned, still kneeling, and called to them.

“Mr. Stone, Mr. Jones, would you assist me, please?” They hurried over, thinking that he needed help getting back to his feet, but he waved them away when they each began to reach for one of his arms.

“No, no, no! I need one of you to hand me the hacksaw that you’ll find in that toolbag over there.” Ezekiel, who was the closest to the bag, went to it and opened it, dug around for a few seconds, then pulled out the saw.

“What’s this for?” he asked Jenkins as he handed it to the Caretaker. Ezekiel noticed that the older man’s eyes were red.

“Unicorn horns are very hard to come by, Mr. Jones,” Jenkins replied dully as he wrapped his handkerchief around the handle of the hacksaw. “They are incredibly powerful healing artifacts. They are too precious to waste. The last one I had was almost used up tending to Cassandra and myself.” He fell silent and stared down at Tim, a look of utter misery on his face. Ezekiel laid a hesitant hand on the large man’s shoulder.

“I’ll do it for you, Jenkins,” he said softly, but Jenkins only shook his head.

“No, thank you, Mr. Jones, but this is something I have to do myself. I owe that to him.” Jenkins turned towards Jacob.

“Mr. Stone, may I borrow your kerchief, please?” he asked. “I need to wrap it around the horn so I can hold onto it.” Jake untied the kerchief that was around his neck as he walked over to the immortal’s side. But rather than hand it over to Jenkins, he knelt on the ground next to him.

“It’s all right, J, I got it,” he said gruffly. “With hands cut up as bad as yours are, you’re gonna need both of ‘em to work the saw.” He wrapped the kerchief around the horn, studiously ignoring the dark, dry blood of the immortal that covered the razor-sharp corkscrewed shaft. Jenkins briefly thought about protesting, but he decided against it. Mr. Stone was right, with hands as badly damaged as his were right now, he would need both to hold the saw straight and steady. He nodded in acquiescence and took a deep breath as he laid the saw blade on the base of the horn.

The Caretaker began to push the blade across the tough bone and gasped sharply at the pain the pressure produced in his still-raw palms. He squeezed his eyes shut in agony as he gripped the saw’s handle to drag the blade back weakly across the horn. He tried another downward stroke, but the blade was barely scratching the horn’s surface. Jacob caught Ezekiel’s eye and nodded slightly in the direction of the struggling man. The thief nodded in understanding, then quickly moved to kneel on the other side of Jenkins.

“Here, mate, lemme give you a hand,” he said amiably, gripping the frame of the saw. Jenkins glanced at the young man and again thought of resisting, but in the end did not. He merely nodded a second time and accepted Ezekiel’s help. Together, the three of them quickly removed the horn.

Jenkins carefully wrapped it in a clean cloth and tied it closed. He clambered painfully back to his feet and watched as Jake and Ezekiel labored to bury the unicorn’s remains. He was stone-faced throughout the process, but the stoic old knight couldn’t keep an occasional tear from slipping down his weathered cheeks as he silently bid his beloved unicorn a final farewell.

\---------------------------------------------------------

As soon as he returned to the Annex after Tim’s burial, Jenkins pulled a chair up next to Cassandra’s bed and sat down in it. That was two days ago, and he stubbornly refused to move one inch from her side ever since, insisting on taking care of the injured woman himself, much to Baird’s frustration. Though he was healing rapidly, the prolonged sitting caused his hip to ache sharply throughout the long hours of his vigil, but he bore it without complaint. He decided that it was a fitting penance for what he had done to his beloved Cassandra, and to Tim.

When he wasn’t changing her wound’s dressings, using an eyedropper to painstakingly place a few drops of the water infused with powdered horn onto her tongue every few minutes, casting spells in an effort to increase the speed of her recovery, bathing her or otherwise tending to the unconscious Librarian, the Caretaker passed the time by tormenting himself with memories of the Unicorn Forest, of their disagreement beneath the Tree, and with vehemently wishing that they’d been able to reconcile their differences before all of this happened.

Cassandra loved him, he knew that, and he loved her with all his heart—though in his heart he also didn’t believe it was possible for her to love him as he currently was. It was a paradox that had been a part of his life for as long as he could remember. All these centuries he’d lived with the belief that he wasn’t good enough for Charlene, but he’d tried to earn her love anyway. And in truth he was no more good enough for Cassandra than he had been for Charlene. But the difference was that Cassandra didn’t seem to care—she wanted him anyway, loved and wanted him very much in spite of his unworthiness. She didn’t need for him to prove himself to her. Cassandra’s love wasn’t a commodity to be bartered for; it was gift—the most precious gift—and she gave it to him, completely and freely, even eagerly, no strings attached. All she had wanted was for him to acknowledge that he felt the same way about her. Her kind of love was something that he had desperately craved for so long.

And he had turned her down. _Again_. Because, he realized, he was afraid of that love at the same time he hungered for it. Afraid that it would be taken away the moment she realized how worthless he really was. Jenkins felt slightly ill as he bitterly cursed himself for his foolishness and his cowardice. Now it might be too late to make amends. Cassandra was taking too long to regain consciousness, it seemed to him.

He sighed deeply and closed his eyes, wishing fervently that he had it all to do over again. He would kiss Cassandra beneath that Tree, and he would kiss her hard. He would hold her beautiful, soft, warm body tightly in his arms and kiss her as though there was no tomorrow. He would kiss her, then pull her down to the ground and make long, slow love to her and simply be happy with her.

_How could I have been so stupid?!_

“Jenkins?”

The immortal shot upright in the chair, pain stabbing his hip sharply at the sudden movement.

“ _Cassandra_?” he breathed, relief blanketing him as he was finally able to see her blue eyes peering at him blurrily from beneath her half-closed lids. “Cassandra! I’m here, my love, I’m right here!” He took her hand and gingerly squeezed it. “How do you feel?”

“Like I got hit by a bus,” she mumbled slowly. Jenkins couldn’t resist kissing her forehead.

“Can you move all of your fingers and toes?” he anxiously asked. He was rewarded with feeble movements of her hands and feet, and he nearly wept with joy. It appeared that, miraculously, she hadn’t sustained any brain or spinal injuries. “How do your ribs feel?”

“Like the bus that hit me the first time put it in reverse and then backed over me,” she croaked slowly. “It hurts to breathe.” He squeezed her hand again and stroked her hair. It was a very encouraging sign if she could still make jokes after all she had been through.

“That’s to be expected,” he said reassuringly. “You probably have some broken and cracked ribs. But we’ll soon be able to set that to rights again.” He reached for an ever-present glass of the alicorn elixir on the nightstand, and lifted her head up slightly from the pillow.

“Here, drink this, my dear,” he urged her. “It’ll help everything to heal faster. We’ll have you up on your feet again in no time now.” Cassandra took a swallow of the drink and made a face.

“Ugh! That’s awful! What is it?” she complained, smacking her lips in disgust. Jenkins chuckled, almost giddy that she was awake and talking to him again.

“It’s a mixture of powdered unicorn horn and water. I can mix it with something else to make it taste better, if you like,” he offered. Cassandra’s eyes went wide at the word ‘unicorn’.

“Oh, my God, the unicorn!” she whimpered weakly, her face beginning to crumple with tears. “I was riding that unicorn! Tim! He wouldn’t stop! I tried to make him stop but he wouldn’t and then suddenly there was this log in front of us and then he stopped and I fell off of him and…” Jenkins set the glass down and took up her hand again in both of his.

“Shhh,” he said, trying to quiet the upset woman. “Relax, Cassandra! Everything is fine now. You’re safe. The unicorn threw you off and you struck the log. He turned on you while you were unconscious and tried to—“ He caught himself, and stopped speaking for a moment to collect himself, the awful memory overwhelming him. Best not to tell her everything just yet. She would be upset when she learned that Tim had to be killed in order to save her life. Jenkins was still trying to come to terms it all himself. He’d been there when Tim was born over 200 years ago, had watched and helped him to grow and mature, nursed him through illnesses and injuries. Tim had been the closest thing to a child the old Caretaker had ever had, as all of the unicorns were.

“He injured you in his panic, my dear. I tried to catch you on Roger, but I was too late.” His voice became rough as he spoke, and he squeezed her hand tightly in his bandaged ones.

“I’m so sorry, Cassandra! I tried to catch you, but I just couldn’t! Can you ever forgive me?” He never mentioned his own injuries, and Cassandra was too disoriented to notice his hands.

“You didn’t do anything wrong, Jenkins,” she said dourly. “It was all _my_ fault. I should’ve done what you told me to do and waited for you. But Tim was so friendly, and I’ve ridden horses before—I didn’t think it would be that much different. I thought it would be okay…” Jenkins shook his head.

“No, Cassandra, this is all _MY_ fault,” he said firmly. “I should never have taken you to the Forest, not without at least sitting down with you and explaining all of the dangers involved. I know how dangerous unicorns can be, I should’ve taken the time to properly prepare you.” He took a deep breath and exhaled it.

“Knowing how much you’ve been wanting to see the unicorns,” he began his confession. “I thought that this would be a good opportunity for a quick visit—just take the baby unicorn in and then get out. I stupidly thought it would be a way to make up for my reluctance to…” Jenkins dropped his gaze to the floor, unable to look Cassandra in the eyes. “My reluctance to kiss you, under the Tree.”

Cassandra, still holding his hand, squeezed it feebly. She opened her mouth to say something, but a yawn slipped out instead. The Caretaker, immediately concerned, patted her hand before placing it under the blankets and tucking them in around her.

“My apologies, Cassandra—you need to rest,” he ordered. “We can talk about this later when you’re feeling stronger. Right now you need to heal and recuperate.” He bent down to kiss her forehead and stroked her cheek fondly. “I love you, Cassandra.”

“I love you, too, Jenkins,” she murmured, just before closing her tired eyes and slipping back into sleep.

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------

The next few days saw a flurry of activity for the team. Everyone felt relieved and energized once they knew that their mathemagician was going to make a full recovery. As Cassandra continued to recuperate, the clippings book suddenly came to life and sent the rest on a mission to recover a rare Mayan artifact. Since Cassandra was awake now and becoming stronger every day thanks to the alicorn elixir, Jenkins felt free to assist the team a little with translations, research and advice, frequently checking in on the recovering Librarian. Jenkins insisted that she stay in bed the whole time, though, leaving the young woman with plenty of quiet time for reflection. The subject most of the time was their unresolved disagreement underneath the Tree of Love. The subject today was a new one, though: The new argument they’d had just last night.

Yesterday morning Eve had come to visit her in the infirmary, and, unaware that Jenkins hadn’t told Cassandra about Tim or what happened to him, had eventually told Cassandra the entire story about, including all about Jenkins’s own injuries and how he had barely managed to patch Cassandra up before he collapsed from exhaustion and blood loss. The redhead was furious, and confronted the immortal about it as soon as he stopped in to check on her later in the day. She was angry that he had kept the extent of his own injuries secret from her, that he hadn’t told her about the death of the unicorn (which she blamed entirely on herself and her impetuous actions); he defended himself by saying that he would’ve told her everything soon enough, but that right now he didn’t want her to waste energy worrying about him, that he wanted her to concentrate on her own recovery. The argument had eventually wound its way back to the Tree again, and Jenkins’s seeming refusal to let Charlene go. He had abruptly ended the argument then by getting up and leaving, citing Cassandra’s need for rest.

So now she lay in bed in the predawn hours, unable to sleep, and thought. She knew her recovery was only an excuse on Jenkins’s part. She knew him well enough by now to know that he was just stalling until he felt comfortable talking about what really needed to be talked about: Charlene. She also knew that he blamed himself for the whole fiasco in the Forest, but she knew that wasn’t true; everything that had happened was actually her fault—for pressuring him under the Tree that night, or come to that, for even planting the stupid Tree in the first place. If she hadn’t done that, none of this would’ve happened.

What was that old saying? _A little knowledge is a dangerous thing_. Cassandra smiled mirthlessly. That was the truth! She’d learned just enough about Trees of Love to be dangerous, just enough to foolishly run off and grow one, not having a single clue as to what it really meant or how it might affect her life or Jenkins’s life. She hadn’t even stopped to consider that it might not be a good idea in the first place. How could it be a bad idea, after all—it was a Tree of Love. Love was supposed to always be a good thing, right? She sighed heavily. Why did she have to be such a idiotic, sappy romantic all of the time? Why was she always looking for that impossible ‘happily ever after’ ending?

Love certainly had turned out not to be a good thing in this case. It had turned out to be nothing but a disaster. And poor Jenkins had been trying to warn her, trying to get her to understand that love wasn’t just all rainbows and red roses. It was a commitment, the most serious kind of commitment. And then when things didn’t go the way she thought they should have gone, she throws one of her patented hissy fits. And look what the results were: She almost got herself killed, she almost got Jenkins killed, and she DID manage to get a unicorn killed. He tried to hide it, but Cassandra could tell he was very upset by that. He loved those unicorns dearly, and because of her he had to have one of them destroyed. And it was all because of her impetuousness and her addiction to romance.

She was a fool, letting this Tree thing come between them like this, letting it and the ghost of Charlene threaten to drive a wedge between her and Jenkins. A look of determination suddenly set itself onto the young woman’s features as an idea took form in her head.

“I know how I can fix this mess right now!” she muttered to herself, climbing carefully out of the bed and completely oblivious to the irony of the moment. She slipped on her long robe over her pajamas and put on her slippers, then peeked slowly around the door of the infirmary. Seeing that the coast was clear, she slipped into the hallway and hurried to the Annex workroom. After checking to make sure Jenkins wasn’t around, she went to the closet door and threw it open. She rummaged around in the packed space for a few minutes, tossing things aside haphazardly, ignoring the dull ache in her chest from the healing ribs until she finally found what she was looking for.

“AHA!” she cried in satisfaction, a smile spreading across her face. “I _knew_ I’d seen one of these in here somewhere!”

She tightly grasped her prize and ran from the workroom, towards the elevator and the Heart of the Library.


	8. Chapter 8

Jenkins emerged from the hallway carrying a tray laden with a freshly-made pot of tea, a cup and a saucer, a spoon, milk and sugar and entered the Annex workroom on his way to the lab. He stopped as soon as he noticed the doors of the closet standing wide open. He frowned as he set the tray down on the table and walked over to close the doors; one of the boys must’ve left them open, again.

He idly poked his head inside to see if by chance anything was amiss. Various items had been tossed carelessly about, leaving the entire closet a mess. The Caretaker sighed and shook his head. What on earth could Jones and Stone have been looking for so urgently that required leaving such disarray? He began to straighten some of the items in the closet and replace them back into their proper places. He suddenly stopped, realizing that something was missing. The axe. The fire axe was missing. Again, he shook his head, this time rolling his eyes, too. What on earth did those two need an axe for? On second thought, he decided that he probably didn’t really want to know, and he resumed his tidying. He pitied the poor door or piece of furniture or wall or tree that they were hacking to bits right now...

Jenkins suddenly froze, his heart inexplicably lurching in his chest.

_What if it hadn’t been Jacob or Ezekiel who’d taken the axe_ , a voice whispered provocatively from the back of his mind. _What if it was Cassandra who took it?_

He shook the idiotic idea from his mind. Why on earth would Cassandra take an axe? The voice answered immediately.

_To chop something down, of course._

His heart stopped in his chest.

“Merciful Jesu, _NO_!”

Jenkins dropped the box of light bulbs he’d been holding and ran as fast as he could to the infirmary. He skidded to a halt outside the door and looked inside, dread swallowing him as he saw her empty bed. He went inside and looked everywhere, calling her name. Nothing. He ran to their suite and looked for her there, but was no sign of her. He turned on his heel and bolted, running as fast as his still-mending hip would allow to the elevator, throwing himself into it and frantically punching the button that would take him to the Heart of the Library. Before the car even touched the ground, he forced the doors open with his still-sensitive hands and jumped out, hitting the ground at a run. Paying no attention to the ache in his injured side, his long legs devoured the distance as he pounded down the pathway, bellowing Cassandra’s name the whole way.

He was gasping for breath by the time he reached the clearing, his hip throbbing with renewed pain. Praying to all the saints in Heaven that he wasn’t too late, the Caretaker burst from the foliage lining the path. He eyes immediately fell on Cassandra, standing next to the Tree, the heavy red fire axe raised high over her head.

With a panicked cry Jenkins ran to Cassandra. Reaching from behind her, he seized the axe just as Cassandra was beginning the downward swing, wrenching it from her grasp and turning to throw it with all his strength into the undergrowth. Jenkins turned back to the surprised Librarian and encircled her with both arms. He pulled her close, pressing her tightly to his chest, heedless of her ribs, the knight on the brink of sobbing. Cassandra slowly put her arms around Jenkins, growing increasingly alarmed.

“Jenkins? What’s wrong?” she asked urgently, thinking something had happened to one of the other members of the team. “What’s happened?” He pushed her away and cupped her small face in both of his hands so he could look into her wide eyes.

“You didn’t use the axe? You didn’t touch the Tree with the axe blade, did you!?” he demanded, barely able to choke out the words.

“No,” she replied, confused. Jenkins heaved a cry a relief and bundled her up into his arms, hugging her again fiercely.

“Oh, thank God!” he whispered, burying his face in her thick hair. “Thank God!” Cassandra pushed herself away from him, confusion still on her face.

“Why?” she asked harshly. “Why did you stop me? This thing’s turned out to be nothing but trouble, and now it’s threatening to come between us! I’d rather see it cut up into firewood than let that happen!” Jenkins put his hands on her shoulders and pulled her close.

“Another piece of lore I didn’t have a chance to tell you about,” he exclaimed, holding her close. “If you had cut our Tree down, Cassandra, you would’ve severed the love that we share now along with it! Our love would’ve died along with the Tree, and it would never be able to grow between us again—ever!” She felt the immortal shudder against her.

“We could never be together! We would be lost to each other forever!” he said bleakly, almost to himself. Realizing the magnitude of what she had almost done, Cassandra tightened her own hold on the immortal and began to cry.

Jenkins released Cassandra and gently pulled the sniffling woman to the ground to sit. He held onto her hands as he spoke to her, his voice hoarse with emotion.

“Cassandra, I was wrong,” he began. “That day when you showed me the Tree, I hesitated out of fear, but not so much because you might be making a mistake—though that was part of it—but more out my own fear that I would be making a mistake. It wasn’t that I thought you weren’t good enough for me; it was because I thought that I wasn’t good enough for you.” He looked down at their hands nervously.

“I’ve been trying to think more with my heart and less with my head, you know that,” the words tumbling from him. “I was hesitant to make a commitment like this to you right now because I thought I needed to prove my worth to you.” He tried to look her in the eyes, but shame held his head down.

“You already know that I am illegitimate, a bastard.” Cassandra began to protest, but he stopped her.

“My mother tricked Lancelot into her bed; I am the product of deceit and adultery. There’s no escaping that fact, Cassandra. From the time I was a small child, I was taught to believe that my tainted birth made me unlovable. To my parents and my extended family, my very existence brought them only shame, and it brought me only resentment and scorn from most of the court at Camelot. They thought I had no right to a place among them. Charlene never...” His voice caught in his throat, and he had to pause for a moment before he could continue.

“I was tolerated, but rarely loved, and never for very long. I believed I simply had no right to expect love from others. I began to think that if I wasn’t worthy of receiving love, perhaps if I just tried hard enough, I could earn love. If only I worked hard enough, achieved enough, I would finally be good enough to love.” He shook his gray head sadly.

“I know how ridiculous that sounds, Cassandra, but when one is a very young boy whose only wish is to be loved and to feel like he belongs somewhere, to feel wanted, one will grasp at any straw. After a while it just became an established thought pattern, even after I reached maturity and supposedly knew better. I simply convinced myself that I was doing things for far less selfish or immature reasons than I actually was.” Cassandra looked steadily at Jenkins, her eyes full of pity. The old man took a deep breath and pressed on.

“And then you came along, my dear,” he said warmly, his hand and eyes going to her cheek. “You came along and you loved me, even though I didn’t deserve it. Even after you learned what I really am. All my life I’ve searched for a love like yours, and when I finally found it—I turned out to be afraid of it, that it was too good to ever possibly be true or be meant for me.” Jenkins began brushing her cheek with the backs of his long fingers.

“You deserve the best, Cassandra; you deserve the best of everything,” he said softly. “I hesitated to kiss you because I first wanted to be the best man I could possibly be before I presented myself to you as any sort of…mate.” He glanced quickly into her eyes then dropped them again in embarrassment and fell silent.

“You’ve _never_ needed to prove yourself to me, Jenkins,” Cassandra said fervently. “You’ve _always_ been perfect to me, just the way you are!” She gently stroked his cheek now.

“All this time I was afraid that you were kind of comparing me to her—to Charlene. Maybe not intentionally, but maybe in the back of your mind. And I thought that every time you did, I just didn’t measure up to Charlene, and that was why you always seemed to hold yourself kind of aloof from me still, just a little. I was afraid that I was never going to be as good as Charlene, that I was always going disappoint you somehow,” she said, voice forlorn and shaking. “You still love her so much and everything…” A stricken look crossed the old Caretaker’s face as he heard the words.

“Oh, God, NO, Cassandra! No!” he protested vehemently. “I’ve never compared you to her, never! And you don’t ‘disappoint’ me in any way! Memories of Charlene were never going to keep me from you, Cassandra, and I’m so sorry if I gave you that impression.” He grasped her hands in his tightly.

“In fact, if I’m honest with myself—it would be Charlene who doesn’t measure up to you. You’ve loved me no matter how flawed I am, no matter how imperfect I am. I’ll even dare to say that I’m glad now that things didn’t work out with Charlene! If they had, I would’ve missed having you in my life.”

Jenkins looked up into her eyes again. Tightening his hold on her small hands even more, he got onto his knees before her and took a deep breath. He looked straight into her blue eyes, unflinching.

“Cassandra, if you’ll still have me, I will kiss you, right here, right now! I will pledge and bind myself to you and to you alone, body, mind, heart, soul and spirit.”

Cassandra stared at the knight, scarcely breathing, stunned at his words. She felt tears prick her eyes again as she looked into his earnest brown ones.

“What happens if I say ‘no’?” she whispered, barely audible. She saw pain, fear and dismay flash like lightening through Jenkins’s eyes, and then it was gone, quickly replaced by the same sad, stoic resignation that had been his accustomed lot in life for so many centuries.

“We continue as we have been, for as long as both of us live, or until one of us ends our love by destroying the Tree.” His voice quavered slightly as he answered her.

“We will stay in a sort of limbo. The magic of the Tree now channels our love and keeps us connected to one another, but not directly bound. In order for us to be directly bound to one another, we must Seal our love.” He lifted his head in a display of bravado that he didn’t feel. “I will leave the decision up to you. I will abide by whatever you say.”

Cassandra dropped her eyes at his words. “My noble knight in shining armor,” she said quietly.

“Always, my love,” he said ardently. Cassandra was silent for several agonizing seconds.

“You’re such a good man, Jenkins; so wise and brave and kind,” she murmured, refusing to look at him. “You’ve suffered so much, lost so much. You’re the one who deserves the best. You’re the one who’s too good for someone like me.” The immortal closed his eyes in anguish, unable to believe what he was hearing. She was going to slip through his fingers! Despite what he’d just said to her, something rose up inside of him, refusing to give her up without a fight. He put his hands on either side of her face and looked directly into her eyes, his gaze suddenly piercing and unwavering.

“Cassandra, please,” he began imploringly. “I can’t do this anymore! This...this...back and forth we seem to keep doing. I love _you_ , Cassandra Cillian—not Charlene, not any other woman! It’s you that I love, with all my heart, it’s you that I want!” Cassandra tugged her hands free of his and laid them on either side of his face, moving onto her knees facing him, her anxious eyes fixed on his. He paused for a moment, not wanting to ask the next question, but knowing it had to be done.

“Do _you_ want _me_ , Cassandra?” he asked point-blank. His quiet voice was steady, but the young woman saw the fear of rejection in his eyes. Suddenly, her small hands slid into his white hair and grasped it tightly in her fists. He saw her answer in her clear, determined blue eyes, and Jenkins, his heart pounding, immediately pulled her to himself roughly, hungrily.

They met one another passionately. As their lips parted and their tongues softly caressed each other, through closed eyes they could still see a bright, golden light envelope them, becoming brighter with each passing second. A gentle, liquid warmth filled them and surrounded them, held them like soft fingers of sunlight. As the kiss progressed, the urgency became more and more intense between the two lovers. Their ardor built, their arms encircled each other and they held each other tighter and tighter until the embrace threatened to cross the boundary into pain. Unseen by the couple, two golden tendrils emerged, one from each half of the Tree, crisscrossing each other several times before taking their final positions—the tendril from Cassandra’s half poised behind Jenkins’s back, the tendril from Jenkins’s half of the Tree poised behind Cassandra. With a blinding flash, the two tendrils plunged into their backs and pierced their hearts through, the two tendrils joining between them. They both felt a sharp, exquisite pain in their hearts as the magic of the Tree burned away all doubts, all fears, all misgivings, a pain so great that they each cried out into the other’s mouth as they continued to kiss, Jenkins holding Cassandra’s head in place lest she break away too soon. While the magic of the Tree completed its work, the couple was swallowed by a ball of blinding gold-white light. As quickly as it came, the pain subsided, and the ball of light exploded outward from them, a veritable blast wave that shot out and filled every corner of the Library and the neighborhood surrounding the Annex for blocks distant.

In place of the pain was left a feeling of serenity, of belonging, of acceptance. Cassandra and Jenkins instantly felt very strongly their love for the other, but even more strongly each felt the other’s love for them like a physical, palpable thing—an unbreakable, living bond that now tightly tied their two hearts together and took their breath away. All they could do at the moment was to lean weakly against each other.

The entire ritual had only lasted a couple of minutes. When the light at last faded they slowly, reluctantly opened their eyes and looked at each other, each trembling slightly in the other’s arms. Both were quietly panting for breath as they broke apart briefly. But even the tiny space that separated them was suddenly unbearable and they quickly threw themselves back into each other’s arms again, tightly for as long as they could. Cassandra began to cry, but Jenkins knew that they were tears of happiness and joy, not sadness or regret. He felt tears welling up in his own eyes, tears that he was powerless to control even he wanted to, and he let them fall freely.

They pulled away a second time, and Jenkins began combing his fingers gently through her long hair and wiping her tears away with his thumbs. She practically glowed now, whether from happiness, or the Tree’s magic, or both, he couldn’t say. He wondered vaguely if he was glowing, too, but he really didn’t care. He knew now that he made her indescribably happy, and she knew now that she made him feel the same; that’s all that mattered. He knew, unwaveringly, in the very depths of his being that they would always be so now. Nothing could separate them, _nothing_ could come between them anymore. Not danger, not magic, not disagreements, not fear, not other people. Not Charlene. Not even himself. _Nothing_.

Jenkins was overwhelmed by the feeling. Never in his long life had he ever felt so sure of something, and that certainty brought him a measure of peace that he had never known before. He held onto Cassandra, savoring the feeling of her body against his, savoring the feeling of peace and contentment and joy that he now shared with her. He could have spent eternity with her, right there, and been perfectly happy.

He had no idea how long they held each other like that. When they at last parted, Jenkins was stunned to find that Cassandra looked even more beautiful now than he remembered. It must be the magic of the Tree that does this, he thought. The lore said that the magic allowed one to clearly see the beloved’s inner beauty as well as their outer beauty. He wondered what Cassandra was seeing right now when she looked at him.

The immortal was overtaken by a feeling of wonder as a realization struck him, and a smile lit up his face. Cassandra smiled in return; she hadn’t thought her knight could be any more handsome than he was already, but here he was, shining like the sun and gorgeous as a god. And now he was smiling at her! She thought her heart would burst with happiness right there on the spot.  
“I pledge and bind myself to you, Galahad, and to you alone, body, mind, heart, soul and spirit,” she whispered, and his smile became even more glorious.

“I’ve never seen you smile like that before,” she said softly, her hand barely brushing his cheek.

“We’re Sealed now,” he whispered. “And that makes me happy!”

The young Librarian stroked his hair, elation radiating from her entire body. “Didn’t you say that Sealing was the same as marriage?” she asked. Jenkins nodded as he leaned forward to nuzzle her cheek.

“Then I guess that means there’s still one more thing we have to do,” she whispered back shyly.

“What’s that, my love?” he asked curiously. Her touch melted his heart as she slipped a hand inside of his coat and ran it slowly over his body.

“What all newlyweds do on their wedding night, of course, silly! Or in our case, the wedding day.”

Jenkins laughed loudly with delight as he understood her meaning. “Can’t we have both?” he teased. Cassandra giggled in response.

“Oh, absolutely, my dear!” she said, doing her best imitation of him.

Jenkins took Cassandra in his arms and kissed her again, his strong hands slipping the robe from her shoulders. When they parted, he carefully unbuttoned her pajama top and pushed it from her shoulders as well. He felt himself actually blushing at the sight of her lovely breasts; it felt like he was seeing her for the first time all over again. He suddenly felt reticent and awkward, as though this was his first time ever with a woman, and he wondered if that was the magic of the Tree, too? He reached out a tentative hand and lightly caressed one of the entrancing globes, and a delicious shiver went through him as the nipple hardened. Cassandra dropped her eyes at his touch, her cheeks turning pink as she giggled again nervously. Her reaction intoxicated him.

He frowned slightly at the sight of the wound in her chest; all of their stitches had been removed days ago, and her wound be completely healed soon. With luck she would have little in the way of scarring, but it still disturbed him. He bent and tenderly kissed the spot, then laid a trail of kisses upward, over her throat and to her ear.

“I’m sorry for what happened in the Forest,” he whispered sadly. Cassandra ran her fingers into the hair at the back of his head, the feel of her nails running across his scalp nearly causing him to swoon.

“I’m sorry, too, Jenkins, especially for Tim,” she whispered back sincerely. And that’s all they said. Neither felt the need to take all the blame onto themselves, neither felt the need to punish themselves any more for what had happened. It was over, they were together now, safe. That was all that mattered.

They undressed each other slowly, as though opening a much-anticipated gift. Jenkins moved to kiss her again, happily remembering the promise he had made to himself at Cassandra’s bedside. As their tongues lightly teased each other, he wrapped his long arms around his Librarian and gently took her with him as he lay down on the thick grass carpeting the ground and kept his vow to make long, slow love to Cassandra beneath their Tree.

Over their heads, unnoticed by the blissfully distracted lovers, the branches of the Tree of Love began to put forth thousands of tiny scarlet buds.


	9. Chapter 9

In the Annex workroom the other Librarians and their Guardian began drifting in for a new day. Flynn was back from Mexico now, where he had been tying up some loose ends from their Mayan artifact mission a few days previous. The first thing they all noticed was the open closet, the jumble of items it contained that were now partially spilling out into the workroom itself, the box of shattered light bulbs. Eve discovered the abandoned tea tray, cup unused, the tea pot full and its contents ice-cold. All of it spelled trouble to her military-trained mind. She could tell by looking at Stone that he was thinking the same thing; Jones and Flynn, not so much. The absence of Jenkins wouldn’t normally alarm the tall blonde very much, but this mess and the cold tea told her that something was up. The Caretaker was a fastidious man, and he would never have just walked off and left things is such a mess, not without leaving some sort of message for the others.

As Baird was about to voice her concerns, the Annex suddenly began to rumble and the floor beneath them quaked sharply, the vibrations knocking several items from tables, shelves and walls before it ended seconds later. The team looked at each other in alarm.

“Earthquake?” asked Ezekiel, breaking the silence. Eve slowly shook her head, her face now worried.

“I don’t know why, but my gut tells me that that quake is related to this,” she waved at the open closet.

“Ezekiel, go check the infirmary; Jacob, you check Jenkins’s lab. Flynn, check the door setting and see it it’s been used today. I’m going to go check their quarters,” she said as she began running towards the corridor.

As soon as she got to the large oak door leading to Jenkins’s and Cassandra’s bedroom, she pounded on it, calling their names. She received no answer. Testing the knob, she found it unlocked, so she gently pushed the heavy door open and poked her head inside, calling their names again. Nothing.

She entered the room and quickly searched it, the bathroom, and both sitting rooms, to no avail. Nothing seemed disturbed or out of the ordinary. Baird pulled the door shut as she went back out into the corridor, feeling very uneasy. Something about this just didn’t feel right.

“They’re not in their rooms,” she announced tersely as she came back to the workroom.

“They’re not in the infirmary, either,” said Ezekiel. “Cassandra’s bed has been used, but that’s the only sign of her in there.”

“Nobody’s in the lab,” chipped in Jacob, and Flynn shook his head and shrugged his shoulders, indicating that the back door hadn’t been used, either. Eve’s bad feeling was growing worse by the second.

“Jones, Stone—I want you two to start checking upstairs,” she barked. “Flynn and I will take the downstairs. Call if you find anything. Let’s go!“ At the sight of her worried, no-nonsense expression, the men offered no resistance and did as she told them.

Three hours later, Baird and Carsen stepped off the elevator and entered the Heart of the Library. Both were tired, both were becoming more worried by the minute. They’d found no sign of Jenkins or Cassandra anywhere, and neither had Jacob or Ezekiel. Eve was trying hard to ignore the growing black hole of dread in her gut. Even Flynn had become more subdued over the last hour of the search.

“If they aren’t here, I don’t know where else they could be in the Library,” said the Librarian anxiously as he headed off down the main path. Baird reached out and grabbed the collar of his coat, yanking him back hard.

“Hey…!” he yelped in protest. Eve ignored his indignation. Instead, she pointed to the dirt path in front of them.

“Look, Flynn!” Carsen glanced at the ground, then bent and looked more closely.

“Tracks!” he crowed, delighted to finally have something concrete to focus his energies on. “Fresh tracks—some no more than a few days old; some made much more recently, within the last few hours…” He got down on all fours and pulled a large magnifying glass out of his jacket pocket.

“Two sets,” he muttered excitedly, peering through the glass. “One man, one woman. Large man, small woman. The older tracks, two sets for each, going and then coming back. Fresher tracks, the woman going, in a hurry now, but NOT coming back. The man, going, in a MUCH bigger hurry, but not coming back either.” He jumped up and faced Eve, face bright with eagerness.

“Cassandra and Jenkins!” he nearly yelled. “They came down here several days ago. So! They’re walking, talking, walking, talking, then something happens. They get into a little lovers’ spat? Cassandra RUNS back to the Library, Jenkins follows her later, not running. That’s the first set of tracks.” Flynn was fairly dancing around Eve as he recited the events that he read in the soft dirt at their feet.

“Second set of tracks: Cassandra comes off the elevator no more than a few hours ago, only now she’s carrying something; you can see that those tracks are slightly deeper. She’s wearing slippers, so she’s come straight from the infirmary, which means she’s very agitated if she hasn’t stopped to dress. She runs off in that direction.” He pointed down the path, then directed his attention back to the ground in front of the elevator door.

“Next, Jenkins, no more than two or three hours ago, follows Cassandra, but he’s in a terrific hurry! In fact, he leaves the elevator car before it even makes it to the ground—you can see the impression here where he landed—and then he runs in the same direction Cassandra took earlier. He’s trying to catch her, trying to stop her, stop her, stop her from doing something, something….impulsive, something…rash, dangerous…” He stopped and looked up into Eve’s astounded eyes.

“Like, maybe, stop her from…hurting…herself…?” Eve immediately began to shake her head in refutation of what Flynn was thinking.

“Suicide?! Are you serious, Flynn? No! Cassandra would never do that! She has no reason to!” she objected. Still, Jenkins never moved very fast unless he had a good reason. He especially shouldn’t be moving very fast now with juries that were still healing. Any danger or threat to Cassandra would be a good reason, though. Eve was sure it wasn’t a threat of suicide, but it had to have been something big that caused the old Caretaker to go after Cassandra like this. To pry open the doors with his bare, still-healing hands, jump out of a moving elevator on a still-healing hip and literally hit the ground running after the young Librarian… The black hole in her gut expanded exponentially.

“Where do the tracks lead, Flynn?” she asked tersely. He pointed wordlessly down the path.

“Then let’s follow them, fast. I’ve got a bad feeling about this…”

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eve trailed close behind Flynn, who was bent over nearly double as he followed the tracks in the dirt path. She called out to Jenkins and Cassandra periodically, but never received an answer. Her anxiety was nearly unbearable. If anything had happened to either one of them on her watch as Guardian…

Carsen stopped suddenly in his tracks and stood bolt upright, Eve barely avoiding crashing into him. He had his nose in the air, sniffing deeply and loudly, sounding like a bloodhound. Baird gave him an inquiring look, her blue eyes wide and impatient.

“What is it?” she snapped, after several seconds of silence on his part. He turned to look at her.

“Don’t you smell that?” he asked.

Eve took a deep breath through her nose. There—now she smelled it. A sweet, perfume-like scent, only not as sickly-sweet as most perfumes were. This was something…different. She looked back at Flynn.

“What is that? Flowers?” Flynn shook his head.

“I have no idea. There’s nothing in the Heart that blooms this time of the year. And even if it was the blooming season, I’ve never smelled anything like that in the Library before.” He rubbed a hand over his worn face.

“Come to think of it, I’ve never smelled anything like that before in my life! It seems to be coming from that direction.” He pointed off the main path, where Eve saw a smaller trail leading deeper into the forest. Flynn set out again in the new direction, this time keeping his nose in the air as he hurried along the trail. Eve followed behind, prepared for any unexpected danger, Library or not.

After a hundred or so yards more, they finally emerged from the forest and into a clearing. The two stopped and stared ahead of them at a huge tree—or trees, since they could see that there were two separate, thick tree trunks twisting tightly around each other. The soaring emerald-green canopy was bejeweled with thousands of deep ruby-red blossoms that hung from the branches in long, trailing clusters like wisteria, the individual blossoms reminding Eve of small roses. The perfume-like scent was strong here, obviously coming from the blossoms, but it wasn’t cloying or overpowering as Eve expected it to be.

Flynn tapped his Guardian’s arm to get her attention, then nodded toward the base of the magnificent tree. There was Jenkins, spooning against Cassandra, both naked except for her robe spread over their waists and thighs, his arms wrapped protectively around the redhead. They were both asleep, the jacket and trousers of Jenkins’s expensive suit folded and serving as pillows. Eve saw the rest of their discarded clothes off in the grass and smiled with relief. Whatever quarrel Flynn thought that these two had had, they obviously had kissed and made up. Literally. She pulled Flynn’s arm as she turned to go before either of the lovebirds woke up. Flynn, however, remained rooted to his spot.

“Come on, Flynn, they’re okay—let’s go!” she urged him in a whisper. Instead of leaving, however, the Librarian suddenly put both of his hands on top of his head in disbelief and shouted excitedly.

“OH, MY GOD, EVE! Do you know what this is?! This is INCREDIBLE!” He slipped from her grasp and ran towards the tree, the horrified Guardian chasing after him.

The shouting and pounding footsteps startled the sleeping pair awake; Eve noticed that Jenkins instinctively placed his body between Cassandra and the source of the ‘danger’ that had awoken him. Once a knight, always a knight, the Guardian thought approvingly.

“NO, Jenkins, sorry! Sorry! It’s just us!” she called out to him. Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, the Caretaker stared in surprise, then in anger, at the intruders, while Cassandra drowsily cowered behind him, her arms crossed over her breasts and squealing in alarm.

“Colonel Baird?!” the immortal barked, looking between Eve and Flynn. “Mr. Carsen?! Sir!? _What_ are you doing here?”

Flynn, completely oblivious to the chaos he was causing, continued to move around the tree, examining and admiring everything about it, much to the annoyance of his Caretaker and the embarrassment of his young Librarian.

“My God, Eve, LOOK at this! Do you know what this is?! This is a fully mature Tree of Love! I’ve _never_ seen one of these in person before, only in books! This is INCREDIBLE! Can you believe the scent of those blossoms? I had no idea that there was one of these in the Library! I’ve been down here dozens of times—how did I miss this?! Unbelievable…!”

“Um, Flynn?” Eve interjected. “Maybe we should come over here for a few minutes and let Cass and Jenkins put themselves together before we go any further with this?” Flynn gave her a blank look, and she nodded sharply at the two naked people caught _in flagrante delicto_ beneath the tree, one peeping shyly from behind the shoulder of the other one, who was glaring defiantly. Flynn suddenly realized what the situation was.

“OH!” he yelped, aghast. “Oh! Jenkins! Cassandra! You’re… Um, Eve and I...We’re just going to go over here for a few minutes, just so you two can…uh…put yourselves together. Okay? Okay! Eve…?” He took Baird’s elbow and guided her off a ways from the tree. Keeping their backs turned to the tree to give the knight and his lady some privacy while they quickly dressed, the Librarian filled Eve in on the significance of the tree and what it meant in relation to the two they had caught beneath it. By the time he was finished, Eve’s mouth was hanging open, dumbfounded.

“So you’re telling me that Jenkins and Cassandra are married now?!” she gasped, trying to get her mind around such a huge, sudden development. “Like, MARRIED married?? As in, ‘I now pronounce you man and wife’ married??”

“No, Colonel, not that kind of married,” cut in Jenkins behind her. Eve turned to face him, now fully-dressed, his hair as combed into place as he could manage without an actual comb. Cassandra stood next to him, in pajamas and robe. Eve noticed that the mathemagician’s face was glowing with happiness, despite the awkwardness of their discovery, and even Jenkins, though not exactly glowing, was somehow different, was far less…brooding.

“So what kind of ‘married’ are you, exactly?” the Guardian asked. Jenkins opened his mouth to answer, but Flynn, unable to restrain himself, began speaking instead.

“They aren’t married according to civil law,” he chattered. “There two kinds of marriage: civil marriage and what some call ‘spiritual’ or ‘religious’ marriage. In many parts of the world, a couple has to go through two steps to marry. First, they have to go to the civil authorities and register as a couple, which is sometimes accompanied by a ceremony, sometimes not. THEN, if they practice a religion that requires it, they have to go through the ‘religious’ ceremony—which is what most people in the United States are familiar with—in order for their union to be considered ‘sacred’ or ‘consecrated’, i.e. ‘spiritual’. In the US, the religious institutions are given authority by the State to act on behalf of the State as the registrar of a marriage, while simultaneously administering the religious rites. Hence the line, ‘By the power vested in me by the State of Oregon, I now pronounce you yadda yadda yadda.” The Librarian paused for a moment to catch his breath.

“Legally, in the eyes of the State of Oregon, they’re still single; theirs is more of what you would call a ‘spiritual marriage’. Only much, much, MUCH deeper. Almost like a tethering. Perhaps even _more_ profound than a tethering.”

“Wow,” breathed Eve, still trying to absorb it all. Suddenly she remembered Jones and Stone, still frantically searching for the two missing members of the team.

“We need to get back to the Annex, before Jake and Ezekiel tear the place apart,” she said, digging her phone out of her pocket. “We can finish this discussion back there. I need some time to let this all sink in anyway!”

As they headed back for the elevator, Eve called the two men to let them know everyone was safe and accounted for. But her mind was spinning as they made their way through the Heart of the Library.

This was a _huge_ change in the team’s dynamic. Yes, everyone already knew how Jenkins and Cassandra felt about each other, though Jenkins thought the relationship was a secret. To Baird and the others, it was the worst kept secret in the Library—Cassandra talked about him constantly and how she felt about him whenever she was alone with Eve. The Guardian had always just assumed that the pair would eventually marry or something. Someday. Much further down the road. Well, she _sort of_ assumed they would marry.

The tall woman shook her head as she walked. This ‘Sealing’ Flynn talked about was so sudden, so unexpected. And happening in this, weird, magical way? Kissing under magic trees and suddenly you’re bound together _forever_? That just seemed so crazy, even for the Library. She glanced back the couple, lagging behind on the path, arm in arm and talking to each other in low, positively snickering voices. Eve actually saw Jenkins plant a lingering kiss on Cassandra’s lips—in public!

Eve turned back and caught up with Flynn, slipping her arm through his as he hurried back to the Library. This thing was definitely going to take some getting used to, no doubt about it…


	10. Chapter 10

Once back in the Annex, Jenkins and Cassandra caught Jones and Stone up on what had transpired earlier in the day, repeating their story for everyone at once, leaving out only the personal details that they wanted to keep private. Eve understood the situation more clearly with the second telling from the precise, methodical Caretaker. This was definitely a huge change for the team, but Eve was feeling a little better about it by now. If they could adapt to her and Flynn as a committed couple, everyone could adapt to Jenkins and Cassandra as a committed couple. She reminded herself again that it wasn’t really that big of a surprise. Everyone knew already how the two felt about each other, after all. It was just that...well... _marriage_...!

Jacob and Ezekiel had remained mostly silent during the briefing, but now Stone spoke up as he pulled a large, cream-colored envelope from a stack of papers on the workroom table and held it up.

“Well, I guess that explains this, then,” he said gruffly, looking at Jenkins and Cassandra. “Me and Jones found it here on the table after Eve and Flynn went off to search for you.” He held it out to Cassandra and Jenkins.

The redhead took the envelope and looked at it. On the outside was written in the Library’s calligraphy _“Caretaker Jenkins and Librarian Cassandra_ ”. She carefully opened it and reached in, pulling out two documents. As they slipped out of the envelope, two gold rings slid out and fell onto the table. Her eyes and Jenkins’s widened in surprise as they looked at each other.

The Caretaker took the documents and examined them for a moment as Cassandra picked up the rings. He covered his mouth with the fingers of one hand for a moment, then shared the contents of the papers with the others.

“One is a marriage license for the State of Oregon. The other is a Declaration of Sealing, issued by the Library,” he said quietly, clearly moved by what he was holding in his hand. “Apparently the Library has already made arrangements with the civil authorities. All we have to do is submit the license to the county courthouse, and then we are legally husband and wife.” Cassandra began bouncing up and down excitedly in her chair.

“And these are our wedding rings? From the Library?” she asked. “They’re beautiful!”

“Sealing rings, my dear,” Jenkins gently corrected her as he continued to examine the documents.

Each ring was solid gold, perfectly sized for each of them, and designed to look like two interwoven tree branches. On the inside of the bands were inscriptions; inside of the ring meant for Jenkins to wear were the words “ _My Knight in Shining Armor_ ”, and on the inside of Cassandra’s were the words “ _Always, My Love_ ”. Cassandra began to tear up as she showed them to everyone.

She next picked up the certificate—the Declaration of Sealing, as Jenkins called it. It was made out on parchment, colorfully illuminated in an almost medieval style along the border surrounding the text of the document with fanciful scenes of wedded domestic bliss, the bride and groom in the delightful little pictures bearing a striking resemblance to Jenkins and Cassandra themselves. They were depicted kissing beneath the Tree, working side by side in the lab, dancing to a record playing on an old-fashioned phonograph, stargazing on the roof of the Annex, cuddling and stealing kisses in the stacks of the Library, doing research at Jenkins’s desk, sharing tea and scones, and various other activities. Cassandra struggled to keep from bursting into tears of happiness.

“So do we have to have a second ceremony, or what?” she asked shakily as she picked up the marriage license. Jenkins shrugged his shoulders noncommittally.

“There’s really no need,” he said. “ _This_ is the one that truly matters.” He held up the Declaration. “The civil ceremony is merely a legal formality. We would need to find someone with the authority to sign the license and then file it with the county clerk, that’s technically all that’s required.”

“Wait a minute, now,” interrupted Eve. “You two might already be used to the idea of being married, but I think you need to go through with the civil ceremony, too. For us!” She waved her hand at the others. “I, personally, would like to attend a wedding!” The others immediately began echoing the Guardian’s sentiments.

“One of us can go online and get certified to be a minister and legally sign off on the license. We can have the ceremony here, in the Library,” she continued, her enthusiasm infecting the others. “You two pick a date, and we’ll take care of everything else!”

Jenkins and Cassandra looked at each other; the immortal didn’t really see the point of a second ceremony, but he could see that the idea appealed greatly to his brand new ‘bride’. He smiled and nodded his head, much to Cassandra’s delight.

\------------------------------------------------------------

Jenkins insisted that the date for the civil ceremony be January 25, and he would not be budged from it. Cassandra got him alone in the lab later that day. She closed the door and locked it so they could talk without being disturbed, then asked why he was so set on that date.

“January 25 is the feast day of Dwynwen Santes in my homeland—Saint Dwynwen in English.” He ducked his white head, somewhat sheepish. “She’s the patron saint of lovers,” the old Caretaker informed the Librarian.

“Oh, Jenkins! That’s so romantic!” she chirped. “Like Saint Valentine!” She immediately chided herself.  
“There I go again—little Miss Romance. You’d think I’d have learned better by now,” she said sourly. Jenkins reached out a hand and patted hers affectionately.

“Nonsense, my love. The world needs romantics to keep it from becoming dark and bitter. I’m very grateful to have a romantic in _my_ life,” he answered. He took up her hand and kissed her fingers. “I actually knew her, you know,” he said.

“Saint Dwynwen?” Cassandra asked in astonishment. “Really?” Jenkins nodded.

“She was one of the daughters of a neighboring king,” he began to explain. “I met her when we were children during visit made by my mother; she was a kinswoman of the king. Dwynwen and I were about the same age. She was a very pious child, even then. But delightful, too; she and I got on famously.” He fell silent for a moment as he remembered the pale, thin, serious little girl with large, dark eyes. He’d been a serious child for the most part himself, and he remembered the many hours the two had spent together during that visit, talking about and puzzling over so many things as only children do. He smiled at the happy memory.

“The legend goes that Saint Dwynwen was in love with a young man,” the Caretaker continued. “One day, he tried to force himself upon her, but she was able to resist him, and in retaliation he left her. God heard her tears, and froze the young man into a solid block of ice as punishment for his cruelty. Saint Dwynwen, being a kind-hearted woman, prayed to God and asked for forgiveness for the young man. Again, God had pity, and granted Dwynwen three wishes. One of her wishes was that God would grant the requests of all lovers who asked her for her intercession. And her wishes were granted.”

“Did that really happen?” the Librarian asked, and Jenkins looked at her with surprise.

“Of course! Those were days of wild magic, remember. Although perhaps not as nobly as the legend states. She had actually been cursed by a jealous rival for the young man’s affections, it turned out. Hell hath no fury, you know. But everything was soon put to rights, for the young man and for Dwynwen. And she was eventually honored as the patron saint of lovers in Wales.” He pulled Cassandra onto his lap and held her in his arms, unable to resist nuzzling her soft neck.

“I’m not much of a praying man anymore, my dear, but I must confess that I’ve lit more than one candle and offered more than one prayer to my friend, Dwynwen, over the last few months. For you and I, that we might one day be together, even if it’s only for a short time.” His voice took on a bashful tone as he dropped his gaze.

“I even promised her that if she brought us together, I would make sure that we...wed...on her feastday, under her patronage.” Cassandra smiled and leaned over to kiss Jenkins softly on the cheek.

“Looks like I’m not the only romantic in this relationship after all!” she teased. Jenkins smiled as he raised his brows.

You forget, my dear,” he said archly. “I am highly trained in the Art of Courtly Love; what you think of as romance these days is strictly amateur hour!” Cassandra laughed and leaned forward to give her knight a quick kiss on the lips.

“I think I’d like to see some of this much-vaunted courtly love, then,” she said, her hand affectionately stroking his hair. He took the hand and kissed it.

“Then you shall certainly have it, my lady!” he rumbled, and kissed her hand again.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There was plenty of time for Eve and the others to make all of the arrangements for the simple, private ceremony. It was decided that, as the Librarian who had brought them all together in the first place, Flynn would act as the minister, with Eve as Cassandra’s Maid of Honor and Ezekiel serving as the Best Man for Jenkins. Jake volunteered to shoot video of the festivities.

After a long debate with herself, Cassandra called her parents to let them know what was going on, and to invite them to the ceremony. Mrs. Cillian offered her daughter cool and terse congratulations, telling her daughter that she was an adult now—if she chose to throw her life away on a man old enough to be her grandfather, then Cassandra was certainly free to do so. Mr. Cillian, however, was surprisingly more receptive to his daughter’s news.

“Do you love him, Cass?” Mr. Cillian asked, genuine concern in his voice.

“Yeah, Daddy, I do, very much. And he loves me, too,” she said, touched by her father’s care about her well-being. He rarely expressed anything in the way of feelings. He paused for a few seconds.

“Does he make you happy?” he asked; Cassandra could hear the slight tremor in his voice, and tears instantly came to her eyes.

“He does, Daddy. He treats me like a princess, and he makes me so happy!” Cassandra thought she heard a faint sniffle come from the other end of the line, and she struggled to control her own sniffles.

“That’s all I can ask of him, then. I just want you to be happy, baby; your mother, too. I know it doesn’t sound like it a lot of the time, but she really does.” There was a long, awkward pause.

“I’m sorry, Cassandra!” he suddenly blurted. “We failed you, we weren’t good parents. We should’ve been trying to give you a happy life, but we focused too much on success, instead. If Mr. Jenkins can give you some the happiness we failed to give you, then you both have my blessing.”

“Oh, Daddy...!” was all she could say for a moment, scrubbing the tears from her face with the back of her hand. “Does this mean that you’ll come?” There was another awkward silence.

“No, sweetheart, I’m sorry,” he said, his tone ashamed. “Your mother... She doesn’t approve of Mr. Jenkins...”

“Yeah, I know, Daddy,” Cassandra interrupted in a small, deflated voice. She suddenly felt very foolish. “It’s ok, Daddy, I understand.” Another long pause.

“I love you, Cass.”

“I love you, too, Daddy.”

As soon as she hung up the phone, Cassandra took a deep breath and wiped the tears from her eyes, then went to look for Jacob Stone and ask him if he would walk her down the aisle and give her away.

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Cassandra’s sadness was soon forgotten as she became consumed with excitement over the plans being made for the ceremony. She wanted everything to be as traditional as possible, and to that end she and Jenkins decided to refrain from wearing their Sealing rings until after they had officially exchanged them at the ceremony.

Cassandra’s desire for a traditional wedding also included—much to Jenkins’s dismay—living apart until the ‘Wedding Night, Act Two’ as she called it. Despite his heartfelt pleas and impeccable logic against doing something so drastic and barbaric, the Librarian stubbornly refused to be moved. At the end of each day she left the Annex with Eve and Flynn and spent the night at their apartment. Jake and Ezekiel soon began leaving at the same time as Eve, Flynn and Cassandra as well; two evenings of a Cassandra-less Jenkins convinced the boys that it was best to just stay out of his way as much as possible whenever his Librarian wasn’t in the Annex.

Jenkins missed her terribly during that long couple of weeks. Their suite of rooms in the Library seemed so cold, empty and lonely now without her presence and energy, their bed even more so. He was always up and dressed, waiting anxiously for her to arrive each morning, and he was always there to bid her a forlorn and lingering goodbye each evening. As he anxiously counted down the days until January 25, Jenkins took to sleeping with Cassandra’s pillow clutched tightly in his arms, her scent that still clung to it offering a small measure of comfort.

For her part, Cassandra missed Jenkins just as much as he missed her. She couldn’t wait to get to the Annex every morning to see him again, even though it broke her heart at the end of the day to see the sad, lost look on his face as they said their farewells. There were a few times when she almost relented and stayed with him, but she held firm in the end. She was a great believer in the old adage, ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’, though the young redhead suspected that by the time of their wedding night she might need a taser to keep Jenkins’s pent-up ‘fondness’ under control.

\----------------------------------------------------------------

Ezekiel and Jake tried to entice Jenkins into letting them throw him a bachelor party. The immortal merely stared at them blankly, until he realized that they were serious. He then graciously, but firmly, declined their offer, declaring that he was far too old for such nonsense. It was the truth, as far as he was concerned, but he also knew what went on at bachelor parties, and he didn’t want to hurt Cassandra by engaging in such shenanigans, even the relatively harmless ones he suspected the young Librarians had planned.

Eve made plans to take Cassandra out for dinner one night and to visit a club hosting the Chippendale Dancers, sort of as a two-person bachelorette party. As Eve was waiting for Cassandra to join her at the back door, she had a few minutes alone with Jenkins. The immortal was tidying up the workroom after a long day. Eve came to stand next to him as he stacked some books in preparation for reshelving later.

“I hope you don’t mind me taking Cassandra out to see the Chippendale dancers tonight, Jenkins,” she said. He merely smiled as worked.

“I don’t mind at all, Colonel,” he replied, pride tingeing his voice. “Cassandra has told me that I have absolutely nothing to worry about as none of those gentlemen can even hold a candle to MY...’gifts’.” Eve shrugged her shoulders and shook her head.

“Well, I certainly can’t argue with _that_!” Jenkins stopped and gave her a mock disapproving look.

“Colonel Baird!” he gasped dramatically, causing the Guardian to laugh. She slipped an arm around the tall man and gave him a quick hug.

“I’m glad everything has worked out for you two,” she said warmly. “I’m glad you found each other. You guys make a sweet couple, and you both deserve some happiness finally. I hope you have a long life together, full of nothing but good things!” She leaned over and kissed his soft cheek, causing the immortal to smile and blush slightly.

“Thank you, Eve. I wish the same for you and Mr. Carsen,” he returned warmly, taking her strong hand and squeezing it. At that moment Cassandra bounced into the workroom, dressed for the evening in her usual short pink skirt and a clingy silk lemon-yellow blouse. She went immediately to the tall man and gave him a peck on the lips, but Jenkins caught her in his arms and held her there as he gave her a deep, lingering kiss. When he let her go finally, her eyes were shining and she was blushing, much to his delight.

“Now,” he said. “If you find yourself too intoxicated to make it back to Colonel Baird’s apartment, you can always call for a door and come back here!” Cassandra smiled as she held his hands in hers.

“You’d like _that_ , now wouldn’t you?” she teased. “But don’t worry, Eve’s going to be the designated driver, so we’ll be fine.” At the crestfallen look on her Caretaker’s face, Cassandra made a sympathetic sound and stood on her toes to give him another kiss.

“Just a couple more days, sweetheart,” she said encouragingly. “And then we’ll never spend another night separated again, I promise!”

“I shall certainly hold you to that promise, my love!” Jenkins replied fervently, putting on a brave face as he linked his arm in hers and walked her and Baird to the front door of the Annex and the waiting car.


	11. Chapter 11

At last, January 25 arrived, dawning cold and clear. After an excited and virtually sleepless night, the Librarian and the Guardian arrived early at the Annex in order to begin getting Cassandra ready for her big day.

Several days earlier the two women had once again made a trip to the Annex’s attic and gone through the collected wardrobes of past Librarians and Guardians. They selected a beautiful gown from the 14th Century for Cassandra to wear, made of pale ivory silk, with long, bell-shaped sleeves. The entire gown was trimmed with ermine and embroidered all over with tiny gold suns, and it fit the Librarian perfectly. The square neckline was just right for showing off the gold crane necklace Jenkins had given her for Christmas. They chose a whisper-thin veil for Cassandra’s head, with a thing gold circlet to hold it in place.

They went to Cassandra’s sitting room to begin getting dressed. As Cassandra locked the doors behind them to prevent Jenkins from ‘accidentally’ entering the room and catching a forbidden glimpse of his bride before the ceremony, Eve noticed a large, flat wooden box sitting on the Librarian’s writing desk. It hadn’t been there yesterday when she and Cassandra left for the day. Pursing her lips in curiosity, the Guardian went over to investigate. She found a small envelope on top of the box, addressed to the Librarian in Jenkins’s neat, sinuous handwriting.

“There’s something here from Jenkins,” the Guardian said as Cassandra came to see what Eve was looking at. The tall blonde handed her the envelope, and Cassandra eagerly tore it open. Inside was a brief note.

_“My Dearest Cassandra—Colonel Baird tells me that you have chosen to wear a veil during the ceremony, to be held in place with a shamefully tiny circlet. That will not do at all! Courtly Love dictates that the queen of my heart should have a proper crown, and so I make a wedding gift of this one to you, my love. I hope very much that you will find it a worthy compliment to your beauty. –Your knight always, Jenkins”_

The redhead exchanged startled glances with Eve after reading the note out loud, then dropped the card onto the desk and pulled the box to herself. She quickly opened it and, gasping loudly, covered her mouth with both hands as she stared in shock at the contents inside. Eve hurried around the desk to look over her shoulder, and her eyes, too, widened in amazement.

Nestled inside the box in a nest of deep red velvet was a delicate crown of solid gold, approximately six inches tall all the way around. The top edge of the crown was rimmed with small peacock feather ‘eyes’ finely wrought with tiny diamonds, emeralds, topazes and sapphires. Around the band of the crown were tiny flowers also made of sapphires, topazes and emeralds. As Cassandra carefully took the crown out of the box and held it up, the gold and gemstones sparkled in the light. Her mouth fell open in wonder.

“It’s beautiful!” she breathed. Eve dragged the redhead over to the full-length mirror.

“Try it on!” she urged. Cassandra gingerly placed the crown on her head, and both women gasped at the sight of the gold and jewels resting against her russet locks. Tears began to build in the Librarian’s blue eyes.

“Oh, my God, Eve—Where on earth did he get this?” she wondered, but Eve only squeezed her shoulders.

“Don’t look a gift knight in the mouth, Red!” she laughed. “Jenkins called you his queen; I say we give him one!”

The pair got immediately to work. After Cassandra took a quick shower, Eve helped her to put her hair up into a sleek chignon, leaving two small, softly curling tendrils to frame her face. They did her make-up, then got her laced up into the gown. Cassandra draped the sheer ivory veil that matched her dress on her head and then attached the gold crown on top of it to hold it in place. Cassandra gave a small gasp when she finally stood in front of the full-length mirror to see how everything looked. She looked so happy and radiant that she almost didn’t recognize herself in the glass. Eve came and stood behind her.

“Oh, Cassandra!” she sighed dreamily. “You look absolutely beautiful! Jenkins is going to turn to jelly when he sees you!” Cassandra turned and gave the taller woman a quick hug as she bounced with excitement.

“Thank you for helping me with everything, Eve! I wouldn’t have been able to do it by myself!” the Librarian confessed. “Just look how my hands are shaking now!” Baird gave her another hug to reassure her.

“Well!” Baird said, taking a deep breath to steady her own nerves as well as the bride’s. “You have something old—your dress. Something borrowed—the sixpence coin Jones loaned you for your shoe. Something blue—the handkerchief Jake gave you.” The Guardian then slipped her hand into her pocket and presented Cassandra with a small blue box.

“This should take care of the ‘new’ part,” she said. “From me and Flynn.” The Librarian looked at her in surprise, then took the box and opened it. Inside was a pair of gold earrings, made to look like a hanging cluster of flowers. Cassandra squealed with delight and immediately took them out of the box and put them in her ears.

“Omigosh, Eve! They’re perfect!” she exclaimed. “They look like the blossoms on our Tree!”

“Well, technically, they’re wisteria clusters,” the tall blonde confessed. “But they looked close enough that I thought they would work.” Cassandra spun around and hugged Eve tightly.

“Thank you, Eve! I love them! And Jenkins will love them, too!” she said happily. The younger woman stepped back and regarded Eve with a more serious expression.

“And seriously, thank you for everything you do for us, Eve. ALL of us. As a Guardian, as a friend; where would we all be without you?” she said, tears threatening to fall. Baird squeezed the bride’s hands warmly.

“Don’t you dare cry and mess up that eyeliner!” she barked with mock severity. “We don’t want Jenkins thinking he’s marrying a raccoon!” She gave Cassandra another hug, then handed her the sweet-smelling bridal bouquet, made from the blossoms from the couple’s Tree of Love. The Librarian took one final look at herself in the mirror. She could scarcely believe it. She was actually getting ready to marry her knight in shining armor. She was actually about have her happily ever after!

“It’s time,” said Eve. “Come on, Red; let’s go put a ring your man!”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jenkins paced back and forth like a caged tiger. For the thousandth time today, he adjusted his ivory-colored silk bow tie and rechecked his pocket square, also of silk, the dark sapphire-colored cloth bearing a pattern of tiny, pale gold-colored suns. For the thousandth time today, he adjusted the sleeves of his new black virgin-wool suit coat and checked his matching trousers for lint. For the thousandth time today, he checked his indigo brocade waistcoat, a pattern of blue-on-blue peacock feathers cleverly woven into the fabric, to make sure it wasn’t missing any buttons.

WHY was he so damn nervous? The Sealing beneath the Tree was a far more serious matter than this civil ceremony; this was nothing but a simple legality. And yet here he was, wearing a furrow into the marble flooring of the Library with his anxious pacing, his heart hammering in his chest. He hadn’t felt like this since the day of his knighting ceremony.

The Caretaker felt something suddenly touch his arm. Letting loose a loud, sharp yelp, he violently jumped and spun around to face his ‘attacker’. Ezekiel jumped back in response and yelped also.

“Geez, Jenkins!” the young man nearly shouted in his fright. “What the hell is wrong with you!?”

“My apologies, Mr. Jones,” the nervous bridegroom said sheepishly. He looked around and saw Jake and Flynn very studiously busying themselves with the video camera that would record the ceremony. “I’m beginning to wish I’d never agreed to this!” Ezekiel shrugged his shoulders carelessly.

“Yeah, well, too late for that now, mate,” he quipped, nodding towards the main entrance of the Library as the doors slid open. “It’s showtime!”

“What?! Already?!” squawked the immortal in panic as Jones gently dragged him over to his position in front of Flynn. Carsen gave a signal to the true Harp of Brian Boru and it magically began to play a stately Celtic tune on its ancient strings as Jacob hurried to his place at the base of the steps. Jenkins began one final check of his suit, nervously smoothing his hair one last time. _Breathe, Jenkins, breathe!_ he reminded himself. _It’s only Cassandra!_ The men turned as one and faced the entrance.

Eve, dressed in a simple, but elegant, cream-colored sheath dress, stepped through the door and, flashing a smile at Flynn, descended the steps and slowly walked to the altar, taking her position opposite Jenkins and Ezekiel. She wanted to burst into laughter when she saw the look on the groom’s face at that moment; the poor Caretaker—a man who had fought and slain _dragons_ without batting an eye—looked absolutely terrified. She turned to expectantly face the doorway with the others as Cassandra made her entrance.

The ancient knight unconsciously caught his breath as he beheld his bride. She paused at the top of the steps, and though the veil obscured her face for the most part, Jenkins could still see her looking around the room, smiling shyly. He felt a smile of his own spread across his face as she gracefully descended the steps and slipped her arm through Jacob’s, the older Librarian looking as proud any father as he gazed on Cassandra and smiled, his eyes becoming a bit misty as he escorted her down the aisle. As Jacob gave Cassandra’s hand over to her groom, he gave her quick hug.

“You take care of our little boy, now, you hear, Cassie?” She nodded and giggled quietly as she turned to face Jenkins, who shot Stone a disapproving look.

The bridegroom then turned his full attention to his bride. Though the veil obscured most of the details, the Caretaker caught the tantalizing glimpse of her red hair, her blue eyes, and the glint of gold in her ears and at her throat as she laid her hand on his arm after passing her bouquet to Eve. With the elegant crown perched on her head she looked like a princess of the Fey, an exquisite, magical creature. He could easily imagine her plump, red lips, her soft creamy cheeks, her delicate neck, and it was all he could do to not rip the veil from her head and take her into his arms right there. Instead, he smiled down into her face and he rested his large hand over her tiny one, and they turned together to face Flynn. The Librarian took in the assembled group, his heart filling with love for each of them. He took a deep breath and then launched into the speech he had been working on for weeks.

“Dearly beloved—“ began Flynn loudly. “No, scratch that! Dear friends— _family_ —and artifacts! We are all gathered here today to witness the civil union of two of our own, Cassandra Cillian and Jenkins. They’ve already been Sealed beneath their own Tree of Love, a unification of hearts and souls so profound that only they can share and know it fully. So this ceremony is for us really, their loved ones, something that we can experience and share with them.

“The very first Tree of Love was the result of the powerful love of Baucis and Philemon, a couple so devoted to each other, so in love with one another, that the thought of one having to live without the other at the end of their lives together was so painful to them that they asked Zeus to allow them both to die at the same time, a request that was granted.” Warming to the subject, Carsen began to become emotional as he continued speaking.

“But even then, they didn’t die, and neither did their love! They were merely transformed into another form of life, into the very first Tree of Love! Through that extraordinary Tree, Bacis and Philemon, and the incredible love they shared, continued to live and thrive for many thousands of years. And even _more_ wonderful—even after that first Tree was tragically lost, Baucis and Philemon and their incredible love _continued_ to live, through the seeds the first Tree produced. Their incredible love continues, undying, to this very day! It stands here before us this very day, embodied now by Cassandra and Jenkins, Sealed by the Tree that Cassandra raised for them and which embodies their own incredible love. The Sealing beneath that Tree was for them alone; this ceremony is for us, so that we can witness with our own eyes at least a pale, faint echo of that Sealing, so that we can say that we have witnessed with our own eyes the joining of the incredible, undying love that exists between Cassandra and Jenkins.” By now Cassandra and Eve were sniffling and discreetly dabbing their eyes, and even the men found themselves trying to swallow down lumps beginning to form in their throats.

“And so, in the presence of all of us here now, in the presence of the Library, in the presence of all the artifacts it contains, I am proud and honored to stand here today and ask—“ Flynn turned to face Jenkins. As had been agreed beforehand, since the immortal Jenkins would outlive Cassandra, none of their vows would include any phrasing related to lifespans.

“Galahad of Camelot, will you have this woman to be your lawful wife; to live together in the bonds of marriage? Will you love her, cherish her, comfort her, honor her; keep her in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, in good times and bad, forsaking all others and being faithful to her alone?”

The tall Caretaker turned to look down at Cassandra, his brown eyes dewy now with emotion, and replied with a firm voice.

“I will.”

“Cassandra of the Library, will you have this man to be your lawful husband; to live together in the bonds of marriage? Will you love him, cherish him, comfort him, honor him; keep him in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, in good times and bad, forsaking all others and being faithful to him alone?”

Cassandra turned to look up into Jenkins’s eyes, a tear slipping from the corner of hers as she struggled to answer without bursting into tears.

“I will.” Flynn turned to Ezekiel.

“May I have the rings please?” Jones, startled out of his trance as he watched the bride and groom exchanging their vows, dug frantically in his pockets for several tense seconds until he finally located the Sealing rings. With an embarrassed grin he handed them to waiting Carsen. The Librarian turned back to the couple before him.

“From ancient times, the circle has been a symbol of wholeness and completeness, a symbol of love that is never ending. As often as either of you look on these rings, may you be reminded of your love and commitment to one another.” He passed Cassandra’s ring to Jenkins. Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, the knight slipped the ring onto his bride’s finger as he made his vow, his voice quavering slightly.

“With this ring, Cassandra, I reaffirm our Sealing, and I pledge myself to you and to you alone, body, mind, heart, soul and spirit, forsaking all others—all the days of my life.” Through the thin fabric of her veil, he saw Cassandra’s eyes widen and heard her draw a sharp breath.

“Galahad…!” she began to whisper in alarm, but he squeezed her hands tightly and looked directly into her shrouded eyes.

“ALL the days of my life, Cassandra,” he repeated quietly and firmly, holding her hands tightly in his. “I already know that I will _never_ love another woman after you, Cassandra. When I call you the queen of my heart, that is for all time. It would be true even if we had never been Sealed. You may not be my first love, but you are certainly my greatest, and you will certainly be my last love.” He then turned and nodded to Flynn to continue.

Flynn, now blinking back tears brought on by the Caretaker’s heartfelt words, then handed Cassandra the ring for Jenkins. Her hands were visibly trembling as she slid the gold ring onto her groom’s long finger, and she made her vow in a hoarse, shaking voice no louder than a whisper.

“With this ring, Galahad, I reaffirm our Sealing, and pledge myself to you and to you alone, body, mind, heart, soul and spirit, forsaking all others, all the days of MY life!”

By now everyone had tears in their eyes, even the granite-faced Jacob Stone. Flynn spread his arms to encompass the whole gathering as he wrapped up the ceremony.

“Cassandra and Galahad, you have now affirmed before us, your family and friends and the Library, your love and devotion for each other. May any difficulties and hardships in your life together be met with courage and optimism. May your life together always bless you with family and friends—found or otherwise—who love and support you. May you share with others the radiance of your of joy. May you always remember that a sense of humor and the simple words “I’m sorry” are both magical and healing. And finally, may the spirit of love always be a part of your lives.

“Before this gathering, Cassandra and Galahad have promised each other their love and their lives, and have given each other rings to wear as a sign of their profound commitments to one another. Therefore, by the power granted to me by the State of Oregon and by the Library, I now declare that you are husband and wife. Galahad, you may now kiss your bride!”

Jenkins and Cassandra turned to face each other, and, his hands trembling ever so slightly, the immortal slowly lifted the veil that hid his beloved from him. As soon as his eyes fell upon her happy, glowing face, he audibly gasped, stunned by her loveliness. His hands went to either side of her head, cupping her face, blinking rapidly in an effort to keep his tears at bay.

“You’re so beautiful!” he whispered hoarsely, completely oblivious now to where they were or that they had witnesses. Cassandra, her heart full to bursting with love for her knight in shining armor, smiled up at him, tears now streaming down her cheeks. Jenkins frowned slightly at the tears and tried to wipe them away with his thumbs.

“I hope these are the last tears you weep on account of me!” he murmured, then leaned down and tenderly kissed his young bride. They separated briefly, then, wrapping their arms around each other tightly, they kissed again, more passionately this time, much to the delight of the others. Ezekiel began clapping and cheering the newlyweds, and he was quickly followed by the others. Flynn retrieved a bowl of raw rice he had hidden earlier and began to shower the bridal couple with handfuls of it. The others each grabbed a handful to toss over the kissing couple while continuing to cheer them on.

When the two finally parted, they turned to face the others, Jenkins with a sheepish look on his face as he realized he’d just kissed Cassandra in front of the others, Cassandra smiling brightly and beginning to bounce with excitement next to him. Everyone stepped forward at once and began congratulating the happy pair with kisses, handshakes, hugs and backslaps.

The group eventually moved back to the Annex for the cutting of the cake and a small reception. As everyone stood and watched, Jenkins and Cassandra cut a slice of the small but gorgeously-decorated double-fudge chocolate cake with an orange-flavored white chocolate icing, Ezekiel Jones’s gift to the couple. Jacob took pictures as the couple fed a bite of cake to each other, then served the everyone slices of the moist, rich confection. Champagne was opened and poured and passed around, and Ezekiel tapped on the edge of his glass with a fork to get everyone’s attention.

“Yeah, um—I’m not very good at giving speeches, but since I’m the Best Man...” He shrugged his shoulders and took a breath.

“Everybody deserves to be happy, everybody deserves to be loved, no matter who they are or what their place in life is. But for whatever reason some people just never find it. I’m glad that the two of you found each other, because I can’t think of two people who deserve love and happiness more.” Ezekiel raised his glass, and the others followed his lead. “To Cassandra and Jenkins: May they have many, many happy years together! And I call dibs on the first dance with Cass after Jenkins! Cheers!”

Glasses chimed against one another amidst a chorus of agreement and well-wishes for the new couple. After several more rounds and toasts, Flynn brought out a phonograph and began setting it up. Cassandra clapped her hands and practically hopped up and down.

“Our first dance!” she squealed happily. Jenkins looked askance at her, but she only pulled the champagne flute from one hand and set it on the table while she grabbed his other hand to pull him out into the middle of the floor. They stood gazing into each other’s eyes as they waited for Flynn to put the record onto the phonograph and drop the needle onto it.

“What song did you select for this most important moment, my ear?” asked Jenkins in a teasing tone, leaning in to nuzzle her forehead, his eyes closing. She smelled divine, her perfume intoxicating him faster and more thoroughly than any liquor could. Cassandra only smiled and tipped her head up to look at him.

“You’ll see!” was all she said. At that moment the music began, and Jenkins instantly recognized it. He threw his head back and laughed with delight as the lazy strains of an electric guitar burst from the flared brass horn of the phonograph. Jenkins immediately wrapped his arms around Cassandra and pulled her in close. She slipped her arms around his waist and snuggled into his broad chest as the music played, the two slowly starting to sway back and forth gently. Jenkins bent his head down so that his lips were closer to her ear. As the vocals began, the remaining Librarians and their Guardian were stunned to hear Jenkins’s rich baritone voice as he began to sing along to his pretty wife.

 _“Whenever I’m alone with you_  
_You make me feel like I’m home again,_  
_Whenever I’m alone with you_  
_You make me feel like I am whole again...”_

The immortal held his Librarian close to himself as they continued to dance, Cassandra quietly joining her voice to his on the second verse, and they sang to each other as they moved more slowly across the wooden floor. By the end of the record they were wrapped in each other’s arms, barely moving at all. Jenkins, again completely oblivious to his surroundings, cupped the back of her head in his large hand and slowly kissed Cassandra. Immediately there were renewed cheers, clapping and whistles from their appreciative audience. The startled knight instantly released his laughing bride and began to fuss self-consciously with his straightening his cuffs.

“Me next!” piped Ezekiel, and he ran out onto the floor to claim his dance with the bride. Eve stepped forward to dance with Jenkins as Flynn put another record on the phonograph, this time a stately waltz; the young Australian surprised everyone by gracefully whirling and gliding Cassandra around the room. As soon as their dance was over, Ezekiel glanced in Jenkins’s direction. The Caretaker nodded slightly, and, with a huge grin, the thief slipped unnoticed from the party and disappeared down the corridor.

Each man in turn had a dance with Cassandra, and even Eve took a turn with her. As everyone else talked and laughed, drank and nibbled on slices of cake, Jenkins stood and watched his lovely queen as she danced with the others, his heart full to overflowing with love for her and with joy that she was his and his alone, now and forever. In all of his long centuries on this planet he never dreamed that he could ever be so happy.

About an hour after he left, Ezekiel slipped back into the room and gave Jenkins a wink and a wide, knowing grin. The immortal nodded in acknowledgement, then stepped forward onto the makeshift dance floor to claim his bride from Flynn Carsen as the current record ended.

“The hour is growing late, my dear,” he announced, his eyes twinkling mischievously as he took her small hand in his. “I believe we still have one last item to attend to this evening before we leave for our honeymoon tomorrow morning.” Cassandra blushed and dropped her head as the others began to raucously clap and cheer.

Before they could leave, though, Cassandra had to toss her bouquet. She plucked it from the cake table and turned her back to group. On the count of three she threw the flowers behind her. They sailed through the air and landed in the startled hands of Eve Baird. Cassandra turned around to see who had caught them. When she saw that it was Eve, Cassandra ran over and hugged the Guardian excitedly.

“Looks like you and Flynn are next!” she squealed happily. Eve laughed and hugged the younger woman back, shooting Flynn a look, her eyebrow raised. The polymath only grinned and waved.

“Your turn, J!” barked Jacob, startling the besotted groom out of his dreamy reverie as he watched his new bride.

“I’m afraid I didn’t carry a bouquet, Mr. Stone,” he answered loftily. Jacob only laughed as he waved Cassandra over to them.

“No, man, now YOU have to toss her garter to the men!” he informed the Caretaker. Jenkins looked at the younger man with confusion. Cassandra stepped forward and took Jenkins’s hand, turning him face her. She bent over and slowly lifted the hem of her dress high over her legs, exposing the lacy ceremonial garter adorning her left thigh as the other Librarians hooted and clapped. Jenkins was appalled.

“Cassandra!” he blurted, shocked, but she only laughed at his discomfiture. Clearly the immortal had never seen this part of a modern wedding reception.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” she whispered. “This is the groom’s version of a bouquet toss. You take the garter off of me and throw it to the men!”

“Barbaric American customs!” he sniffed. But he knelt before her and slowly, seductively, his eyes locked onto hers, he slid his hands up her long leg to the bit of lace. He slid the garter slowly from her thigh, unable to resist leaving a trail of soft kisses in its wake. Their audience was delighted with the show and cheered its approval. Cassandra’s cheeks turned pink, much to Jenkins’s delight.

The tall man clambered to his feet and turned his back to the men, then tossed the garter over his shoulder. It landed in the hands of Ezekiel Jones, and he broke into a huge grin.

“Aw, man!” groused Jacob as he watched the thief slid the garter onto the bicep one arm. “Some dudes have all the luck!”

“Not luck, mate, it’s skill!” crowed Jones, snapping the garter to punctuate his words. Stone made a fist as though he was going to punch the Australian, who only laughed and darted out of reach.

The ritual obligations fulfilled, the knight finally escorted his lady down the corridor, the others following behind them, shouting out suggestive comments and even breaking out into a bawdy Eighteenth Century English drinking song about a newlywed couple on their wedding night that Jacob taught them just for the occasion, much to groom’s delight. When the procession finally reached the elevator, Jenkins turned and faced the rowdy group.

“Librarians, Guardian,” he addressed them loudly. “Cassandra and I thank you all for everything you’ve done for us today, as well as for all of your love and support over the last few weeks. However, here is where we must part company, for though I wish I could bring you all with us now, I’m afraid that this is a test of...’manhood’ that we two must face alone.” The tipsy Caretaker bowed deeply to their raucous cheers and then swept his bride into the elevator.

“Where are we going?” Cassandra asked as the elevator descended. Jenkins smiled down at her.

“I have a surprise for you, my dear,” he said taking her hand and kissing it. “I thought it would be appropriate to spend our wedding night beneath our Tree. While you were preparing for the ceremony, I took some time to make some preparations of my own, with the help of Mr. Jones.”

Jenkins led her carefully along the dark pathway leading to their Tree of Love. While they were still a way off, Cassandra saw a light shining through the trees and undergrowth that became brighter as they came closer to the clearing. When they finally emerged from the path, Cassandra gasped in delight at the sight that greeted them.

The Tree was now gigantic, soaring nearly a hundred feet into the sky. It’s elongated branches, now resembling those of a weeping willow, draped gracefully to the ground. There were still clusters of fragrant blossoms hanging from the branches, though not as many now, and soon the blossoms would disappear altogether until next year. The light Cassandra saw was coming from within the drooping branches.

Jenkins stepped quickly forward and swept aside a portion of the branch curtain, inviting her to enter with a smile and a bow. As she slipped through the opening, she gasped again. The gracefully draping branches created a small ‘room’ beneath the Tree, and Jenkins had turned the space into a snug, romantic love nest. Though smaller than the one in their bedroom, there was actually a bed set up against the Tree’s trunk. Wrought-iron stands held lit candles that cast a warm, honey-colored glow to everything. Near the bed was small, low table, with a bottle of champagne chilling in a bucket of ice. There was also caviar, fois gras and other delicacies, elegantly arranged on several plates. The air was perfumed by the Tree’s blossoms.

“Oh, Jenkins!” Cassandra breathed, her hands covering her mouth. “It’s...it’s...” She couldn’t say anything else. She turned and threw her arms around the tall man and hugged him tightly.

“It’s magical, Jenkins!” she whispered, then raised her head to look at him, her blue eyes shining in the candlelight. “It’s like something out of a fairy tale!” He bent his head and kissed her softly.

“So are you, Cassandra,” he murmured, his eyes becoming dark. She immediately recognized the look, and dropped her eyes from his while biting her own lower lip, knowing that Jenkins always found that irresistible. He responded immediately, pulling her closer to himself and covering her shoulders and throat with several soft, open-mouth kisses. She sighed loudly and brought his face up to hers for a deep kiss, her tongue slipping between his soft lips to tease his tongue.

He moaned softly into her mouth. He had ached for so long to hold her in his arms again, to kiss and hold and explore her, but he restrained himself a bit longer. It wouldn’t do to lose complete control just yet. She was his beloved, his lady, his wife, not some bought and paid for harlot. She deserved better, she deserved respect, she deserved honor. As the leisurely kiss continued, Jenkins’s hands moved over her back and found the lacings of her dress. He quickly pulled them loose and pushed the silken gown from her shoulders, leaving it to pool on the ground at her feet. He was surprised to see that she had no underclothes on save for a thin muslin shift. He backed away from her a step, his hands now gently going to her hair and pulling out the pins holding it in place, loosening her red locks from the chignon and allowing them to flow softly over her shoulders. As he worked to unpin her hair, she removed the crown and her veil. When all of the pins were removed, he stood back further so he could see her entire body. He felt a hot thrill go through him as he took in the soft curves of her hips and thighs, her lovely, perfect breasts, that most exciting place between her legs hiding behind that fluff of pale red hair...

He quickly stripped off his own clothes. He climbed into the bed and held the sheet up, patting the mattress in invitation.

“Come, my love, let’s share a cuddle and some talk.” His young bride, frowning slightly, slipped into the bed and snuggled up against her husband’s chest as he wrapped the sheet tightly around them and kissed her head.

“You want to talk? On our wedding night? Seriously?” she asked quizzically, looking up into his handsome face. He merely smiled as he fondly returned her gaze.

“Of course,” he replied. “We’re married now; it’s my understanding that couples stop having sex once they’re married. So, now we talk.” Cassandra backed away and stared at him in astonishment.

“Are you kidding me?” she yelped. Then she caught the mischievous twinkle in his otherwise placid brown eyes. She punched his shoulder in irritation. “Oh, you’re just _awful_!” He took her in his arms again and kissed her hard, allowing his desire to take control of him.

“Indeed, I am,” he rumbled into her ear. “I’m _awfully_ in love with you.” He kissed her again, tenderly this time, and nuzzled her cheek and ear.

“Do you know how beautiful you are?” he whispered into her ear as he lightly ran his hand over her body, dizzy with barely-restrained lust. “You’re like a goddess! My own Aphrodite—my own beautiful, perfect Goddess of Love!” He showered her with tiny kisses and nibbles as he spoke, tickling Cassandra and making her giggle. She ran her fingers into his white hair and looked into his warm brown eyes. She saw nothing but love in them, love that was all for her and her alone. It made her giddy to think that this handsome, kind, brave, brilliant man was hers now. Hers forever. A thought suddenly struck her and she began to laugh.

“Do you think a love goddess really make a good mate for a pure knight of virtue?” she asked innocently, her nails barely grazing the skin of his chest and belly. She felt him shiver slightly in response, his member stirring and hardening rapidly against her thigh. She continued to lightly scratch him as he answered her.

“Absolutely, my love,” Jenkins purred happily, his hand now cupping her perfect breast and squeezing it gently. He bent down and kissed it, the tip of his tongue darting out to tease the nipple into a plump bud. His desire for her shot through him like a bolt of lightning as she now gently raked her nails over his thigh and buttock.

“After all these years, perhaps my virtue actually needs some...’tarnishing’”, he murmured, his lips brushing hers. Cassandra laughed and stroked his cheek.

“Someday I really am going to have to teach you how to talk dirty!” she chided him playfully. He tossed his head back defiantly.

“I refuse to learn,” he said archly. “I prefer my euphemisms, thank you very much!” Cassandra’s small hand suddenly slipped between them and she seized his manhood and balls, giving them a suggestive squeeze and causing the startled Jenkins to suck in a sharp breath and to whimper softly with want.

“I prefer your...’euphemisms’, too,” she said wickedly. Jenkins threw himself back onto the bed away from her, mock horror on his face.

“Alas! I am a virtuous knight fallen through love!” he wailed pathetically, draping his arm dramatically over his eyes. “Tarnish me, my love! Tarnish me now!” He uncovered his eyes and looked at her, his exaggerated expression timid and fearful.

“But, please...Be gentle!” he begged in a quavering whisper. Cassandra burst into laughter and threw herself into his eager embrace, kissing him deeply and hungrily.

“I love you so much, Galahad,” she said, closing her eyes as she savored the feeling a safety and love she felt as she lay in her husband’s arms. “You really are my knight in shining armor, you know.” He tightened his strong arms around her and nuzzled her sweet-smelling hair.

“Always, my love, for as long as I live,” he replied. He tipped her face up and kissed her again, tenderly at first, then harder and more deeply, passionately, as he finally gave in to his hunger for her. For a second time, the happy couple made long, slow, passionate love beneath their Tree of Love.

A few hours later, Cassandra’s eyes slid open sleepily. She was disoriented at first, but soon remembered where she was and why, and she smiled. Most of the candles had burned out by now, but there was still just enough still lit to illuminate the lovers’ bower beneath the Tree. She heard the deep, steady breathing of Jenkins just behind her as he continued to sleep, and she grinned again as she remembered the feel of his strong, skillful hands on her body as he made unchecked, passionate love to her. She had expected him to be a lot more amorous than usual after having slept apart for so long, but once he let go Jenkins had been positively, wonderfully, animalistic. He’d certainly earned a good night’s sleep!

Cassandra reached down and gently raised her husband’s hand, looking at the gold ring on one of its fingers. Her ring. And his ring on her own hand. Two rings symbolizing the magic of the love that now bound them together forever. Just a few years ago she was nothing but a nameless janitor, unloved, unwanted, unneeded. Now, not only was she a Librarian, she was the wife of a man who loved her fiercely, who wanted her unreservedly, who needed her desperately. How had she suddenly gotten so lucky?

She carefully turned over onto her back, trying not to disturb the man sleeping next to her, but the moment he felt her move he woke up. Blinking sleepily, he tightened his arm around her and leaned forward to gently kiss her head.

“What’s wrong, my love?” he whispered drowsily.

“Nothing, Galahad. I was just turning over so I could see your handsome face,” she answered. He opened his eyes and looked into her blue ones, smiling.

“Well, your curiosity is going to cost you now, my dear!” he growled, drawing her to himself and kissing her neck and shoulders. Cassandra felt his manhood hardening again as he quickly became more awake and ardent, his hands roaming over her body. The Librarian sighed with content and ran her fingers into his thick mane of hair, inviting him to kiss her. He was happy to oblige, and as he moved to lie on top of her, his urgency building as he deeply kissed his young bride and began to make love to her again, she thought to herself that they were indeed the luckiest and happiest people on earth.

**FINIS!**

**Author's Note:**

> As always, thank you for reading!


End file.
